

veteran Vols 

/ST Brig. 1st Div 

3rd Corps. 



H0URS,««IEKrTAOVAHCCDI/o 
/ Kr *»0 ENGAGED THE EKEKY 




Monument ol 57th Pa. Vet. Vols., at Sherfj 's house on the battlefield of Gettysburg. 

The monument was dedicated with impressive ceremonies 

on July 2, 1888. 



/ 



HISTORY 



OF THE 



FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT, 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN 
VOLUNTEER INFANTRY. 



First Brigade, First Division, Third Corps, and 

Second Brigade, Third Division, Second Corps, 

Army of the Potomac. 



COMPILED BY 

JAMES M. MARTIN, E. C. STROUSS, 

R. G. MADGE, R. I. CAMPBELL, 

M. C. ZAHNISER. 



McCoy & Calvin, Printers, 
Meadville, Pa. 



J /I 






TO THE MEMBERS 

OF THE 

FIFTY-SEVENTH 

PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS, 

LIVING AND DEAD, 

AND TO THEIR CHILDREN, 

AND TO THEIR CHILDREN'S CHILDREN, 

FOREVER, 

IS THIS VOLUME DEDICATED. 



TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER I. 

Organization of the Regiment — Camp Curtin — Departure for 
Washington — In Old Virginia — Colonel Maxwell Resigns — 
Colonel Campbell 9-17 

CHAPTER II. 

We Embark for the Peninsula — Yorktown — Camping in the 
Mud — Peach Orchard — Artillery Practice — Battle of Wil- 
liamsburg . . 18-28 

CHAPTER III. 

Battle of Fair Oaks — Death of Major Culp — Increasing Sick 
List — Advancing Our Lines — The Seven Days' Battles — 
Glendale or Charles City Cross Roads — The Fifty-Seventh 
Under Captain Maxwell as Rear Guard — Malvern Hill — 
Retreat to Harrison's Landing 29-42 

CHAPTER IV. 

Camp Life at Harrison's Landing — Major Birney Assigned 
to the Command of the Regiment — Transferred to Gen- 
eral Birney's Brigade — Evacuation of Harrison's Land- 
ing and the Peninsula — The Army of the Potomac is 
Sent to Reenforce General Pope 43-52 

CHAPTER V. 

Second Bull Run Campaign — Battle of Chantilly — Death of 
General Kearny — His Body Escorted to Washington by 
a Detachment of the Fifty-Seventh — Retreat to Alexan- 
dria — Conrad's Ferry — Colonel Campbell Rejoins the 
Regiment 53-60 

CHAPTER VI. 

On to Richmond Once More — Foragers Captured — General 
McClellan Superseded by General Burnside — The March 
to the Rappahannock — Battle of Fredericksburg... 61-68 



CONTENTS 

CHAPTER VII. 

Camp Pitcher — The "Mud March" — General Hooker in Com- 
mand of the Army — Resolutions Adopted by the Fifty- 
Seventh — Re-assignment to the First Brigade — Anecdote 
of Colonel Campbell — Drill and Inspection — Adoption of 
Corps Badges — The Chancellorsville Campaign — Jackson 
Routs the Eleventh Corps — A "Flying Dutchman" — In 
a Tight Place — General Hooker Disabled — General Sedg- 
wick's Movements — A New Line Established — Strength 
of the Fifty-Seventh and Its Losses 69-81 

CHAPTER VIII. 

Back Again in Our Old Camp — Cavalry Battle at Brandy 
Station — The March to Gettysburg — Hooker's Request 
for Troops at Harper's Ferry — Asks to be Relieved from 
the Command of the Army — We Arrive at Gettysburg — 
Battle of July 2d— Strength of the Fifty-Seventh— Its 
Losses — General Graham Wounded and Captured — 
Wounding of General Sickles — Battle of July 3d — July 
4th — The Confederates Retreat — General Sickles Asks 
for a Court of Inquiry — President Lincoln to Sickles — 
A Visit to the Battlefield Twenty-five Years Later 
82-04 

CHAPTER IX. 

We Leave Gettysburg — Rebel Spy Hung — French's Division 
Joins the 3d Corps — Enemy's Position at Falling 
Waters — He Escapes Across the Potomac — In Old Vir- 
ginia Again — Manassas Gap — Camp at Sulphur Springs — 
Movement to Culpepper — Eleventh and Twelfth Corps 
Sent West — Lee's Efforts to Gain Our Rear — Skirmish 
at Auburn Creek — Warren's Fight at Bristow Station — 
Deserter Shot — Retreat of the Enemy — Kelly's Ford — 
Mine Run Campaign — The Regiment Re-enlists — The 
"Veteran Furlough" — Recruiting — Presented with a New 
Flag by Governor Curtin — Back to the Front — General 
Grant Commands the Army — Reorganization — The Wil- 
derness Campaign — Three Days of Hard Fighting — Loss 
in Fifty-Seventh 95-110 



CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER X. 
The Movement to Spottsylvania Court House — General Sedg- 
wick Killed — Hancock's Grand Charge of May 12th— 
Great Capture of Prisoners, Guns and Colors — The Fa- 
mous Oak Tree — Ewell's Effort to Capture Our Wagon 
Train— Losses in the Fifty-Seventh at Spottsylvania— 
Movement to North Anna River — Fight at Chesterfield 
Ford — We Cross the Pamunkey — Skirmish at Haw's Shop 
and Totopotomoy Creek — Battle cf Cold Harbor — Our 
Colors Struck and Badly Torn by a Piece of Shell — Flank 
Movement to the James River — March to Petersburg — 
Severe Fighting at Hare's Hill — Battle of June 22d— 
Losses in the Fifty-Seventh — Fort Alex. Hays — Peters- 
burg — We Move to the North Side of the James — Straw- 
berry Plains — Return to Petersburg — The "Burnside 
Mine'' — General Mott in Command of Our Division — 
Deep Bottom — Other Marching and Fighting Around 
Petersburg 111-125 

CHAPTER XI. 
Recruits — Dangerous Picket Duty — Muster-out of Old Regi- 
ments — Composition of the Brigade — Expedition Against 
the South Side Railroad — Battle of Boydton Plank Road 
or Hatcher's Run — Disguised Rebels Capture Our Picket 
Line — Election Day — Thanksgiving Dinner of Roast Tur- 
key — Change of Camp — Raid on Weldon Railroad — A 
Hard March Returning — "Applejack'' — General Hum- 
phreys in Command of the Second Corps 126-137 

CHAPTER XII. 
Disbanding of Companies A and' E — Regiment Organized 
Into a Battalion of Six Companies — Consolidation of the 
Eighty-Fourth with the Fifty-Seventh Pennsylvania — 
Necessity for Changing the Letter of Some of the Com- 
panies — Confusion in Company Rolls Growing Out of It — 
Officers of the Consolidated Regiment — Another Move 
Across Hatcher's Run — The Regiment Again Engaged 
with the Enemy — Great Length of the Line in Front of 
Petersburg — A Lively Picket Skirmish — Battle Near 
Watkin's House — Enemy's Picket Line and Many Pris- 
oners Captured 138-146 



CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER. XIII. 

Beginning of Our Last Campaign — Battle of Five Forks — 
On Picket Duty on Old Hatcher's Run Battlefield — Jubi- 
lant Rebels — Enemy's Lines Broken — Petersburg and 
t Richmond Evacuated — In Pursuit of the Enemy — Battle 
of Sailor's Creek — High Bridge — General Mott Wounded — 
Lee's Army Breaking Up — Appomattox — Joy Over the 
Surrender — On the Backward March — Camp at Burkes- 
ville Junction 147-156 

CHAPTER XIV. 

Departure from Burkesville — Marching Through Richmond — 
The March to Washington — Passing Over Old Battle- 
fields — Camp at Bailey's Cross Roads — Grand Review 
of the Army of the Potomac — The Order of March — The 
Fifty-Seventh Ordered Mustered Out — Names of En- 
gagements in which the Regiment Participated — Its 
Casualties — We Start for Harrisburg — Finally Paid and 
Discharged — Farewell Address of Our Field Officers 
157-163 

Appendix A. — Roster of Officers 164-169 

Appendix B. — Medical Report of Surgeon Lyman for year 
1862 ■ 170-175 

Appendix C. — Address of Lieut.-Col. L. D. Bumpus at the 
Dedication of tihe Regimental Monument at Gettysburg, 
July 2d, 1888 176-1S9 

Appendix D. — Reminiscences of the Fifty-Seventh Regiment 
by Gen. William Birney 190-196 



PREFACE. 

When the idea of publishing the History of the Fifty- 
Seventh Pennsylvania Veteran Volunteers was first con- 
ceived and a committee appointed to prepare the manu- 
script for the same, the chief difficulty to be met with was 
to confine the limits of the work to such a size that the 
price of the book would be such that it might be placed 
within the means of all the survivors of the regiment. 

The committee regrets that the muster-out rolls of the 
regiment were not accessible, nor could they be copied 
from the rolls at Washington, D. C. 

Even if the rolls could have been copied and published 
in the book, it would have greatly added to the price of 
the work and would have required a much greater fund 
than the committee had on hand for that purpose. 

A great deal of pains have been taken and the marches, 
campaigns and battles of the regiment have been carefully 
studied, and it is to be hoped that they will be found to be 
accurately described. 

If the labor of the committee will meet the approval 
of those who have marched and fought with the gallant old 
regiment, it will be duly appreciated by those compilirg 
the work. 

J. M. Martin, 
E. C. Stroiss, 
R. G. Madge, 
Robert I. Campbell, 
M. C. Zahnizer, 
B. F. Smith, 

Committee. 




Historical Committi e 57th Pennsylvania Veteran Volunteers. 



1. J. M. Martin. 

3. R. G Mad 

5. M. ( '. Zahnizer. 



2. E. C. Strouss. 
4. K. I. Campbell. 
6 B P. Smith. 



HISTORY 



OF THE 



FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT, 

PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN 
VOLUNTEER INFANTRY. 



CHAPTER I. 

BY J. M. MARTIN. 

Organization of the Regiment — Camp Curtin — Departure for 
Washington — In Old Virginia — Colonel Maxwell Resigns — 
Colonel Campbell. 

The sanguinary battle, and almost disgraceful rout 
of the Union army under General McDowell at the 
first Bull Run in July, 1861, convinced the authorities 
at Washington that the insurrection of the slave states 
was not a mere spasm of anger at their defeat in the 
preceding presidential election to be crushed out by 
the levy of 75,000 troops, undisciplined and indiffer- 
ently equipped, in a three months' service of holiday 
soldiering, and that Secretary Seward's prophecy that 
a sixty days' campaign would restore the Union and 
bring peace to the nation was a dream destined not to 
be realized. Acting on this conviction a call was made 
for 300,000 volunteers to serve for three years, or 
durinsr the war. 



IO HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

To meet the emergency, evident to many, who 
were not disposed to accept the prophecy of the Sec- 
retary of State, Andrew G. Curtin, whose name will 
go down in history as " Pennsylvania's War Gov- 
ernor," organized, equipped and had put in training 
that superb body of men, " The Pennsylvania Re- 
serves," who through all the four years of bloody 
conflict to follow, were to find the place their name 
indicated, on the skirmish and picket line, and in the 
front of the battle, were the first to respond, and none 
too quickly, for the safety of the Nation's Capital. In 
obedience to this call other regiments and battalions 
were promptly organized and forwarded so that by 
September I, 1861, Arlington Heights and the envi- 
ronments of Washington were thickly studded with 
the camps of these new levies, and out of the mass was 
being moulded, under the hand of that skillful drill 
master, General George B. McClellan, that mighty 
host known in history as the Armv of the Potomac, 
whose valiant deeds in the cause of Union and Lib- 
erty are co-eternal with that of the Nation. 

At the first, regiments were recruited and mus- 
tered from single cities, towns and counties, but as 
time passed and the first flood of recruits were mus- 
tered into service, companies and squads, to the num- 
ber of a corporal's guard, were gathered from dis- 
tantly separated districts, and rendezvousing at some 
common camp were consolidated into regiments and 
battalions. Such was the case in the organization of 
the 57th Pennsylvania Volunteers, the place of rendez- 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. II 

vous and final mustering being in Camp Curtin at 
the State Capital. 

The roster of the regiment, by company, shows 
the different sections of the state whence recruited, viz : 

Company A, Susquehanna and Wyoming counties. 

Company B, Mercer county. 

Company C, Mercer county. 

Company D, Tioga county. 

Company E, Allegheny, Mercer and Lawrence 
counties. 

Company F, Mercer county. 

Company G, Bradford county. 

Company H, Bradford county. 

Company I, Mercer and Venango counties. 

Company K, Crawford county. 

Thus it will be seen at a glance on the state map 
that there were representatives in the regiment from 
Wyoming county in the east; thence along the 
northern border of Crawford, Mercer, Venango and 
Lawrence counties in the extreme west. Before, how- 
ever, the final rendezvous of these several companies 
at Camp Curtin there were smaller camps established 
for recruiting in several localities, notably that at 
Mercer, Mercer county, where it may be said was 
established the original regimental headquarters. 

The Hon. William Maxwell, a graduate of West 
Point, but at that time pursuing the peaceful avoca- 
tion of the practice of law in that county, was, about 
September i, 1861, authorized by Governor Curtin 
to recruit a regiment for the service. With this in 
view he established a rendezvous camp outside of 



12 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

the borough limits of the town of Mercer, on North 
Pittsburg street, in a field given for that purpose by 
the late Hon. Samuel B. Griffith, and which was 
named in honor of the donor, "Camp Griffith." Here 
temporary barracks were erected and a regular system 
of camp duties inaugurated, and the usually quiet 
hamlet of Mercer became the scene of quite active 
military enthusiasm; the still breezes of the Neshan- 
nock being stirred by the beat of drums and shrill 
notes of Fife. In two or three weeks after the estab- 
lishing of this camp a large number of volunteers 
were recruited who farmed the nucleus of what after- 
wards became Companies B, C, E, F and I, of the 
regiment. When the number of these recruits became 
sufficient for the formation of a battalion Colonel 
Maxwell transferred them to Camp Curtin. In making 
this transfer the men were taken in conveyances over- 
land to the "Big Bend" on the Shenango and there 
embarked on a canal boat for Rochester, Beaver 
county, and thence by the only line of railway, the 
Pittsburg, Ft. Wayne & Chicago, to Pittsburg and 
Harrisburg. Along the way from Camp Griffith to 
the Ohio these recruits enjoyed a continual ovation; 
the last, alas ! that many in that band ever received. 
At Pittsburg they were joined by others from Alle- 
gheny and a small contingent from the northeastern 
part of Lawrence county, who cast their fortunes 
with Company E. 

Arriving at Camp Curtin the regiment was 
rarid'y filled up to the required ten companies by the 
addition of Companies A, D, G, H and K. 




COL. WILLIAM MAXWELL 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 1 3 

In the latter part of October the regiment was 
organized and mustered into the United States 
service. 

Immediately following the mustering, clothing 
was distributed, and stripped of every habiliment and 
insignia of the citizen and arrayed in forage caps, 
dark blue blouses, sky blue pants and army brogans 
the regiment marched to the armory in the city and 
received its equipment — Springfield muskets and car- 
tridge boxes. An impressive ceremony, one not to be 
forgotten by those present, was the committing by 
Governor Curtin with appropriate words to the care 
of the regiment the colors : 

The starry flag, 

With stripes of red and white, 

And field of azure blue. 

Sacred emblem of our Union, in defense of which 
many who that day stood as stalwarts in those ranks, 
gave health, and limb, and life in the three years to 
follow. 

Thus fully inducted into service the regiment set- 
tled down to the daily routine of camp duty, drill and 
guard mounting, waiting for the call to the more 
heroic service at the front beyond the Potomac. 

To those accustomed to the dainties of the home 
table and unstinted in their access to the larder, the 
black coffee and indigestible sea biscuits, with the 
suggestive initials "B. C." stamped upon them, soon 
mollified their love of camp life and cultivated a crav- 
ing desire to terminate the "cruel war" at the earliest 



14 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

date possible, even at the risk of being hurt or hurt- 
ing somebody in the attempt. 

During the month of November that destructive 
pest of the camp, measles, broke out in the regiment, 
and proved to many a foe more to be dreaded than the 
bullets of the enemy; besides, to go a soldiering in 
defense of one's country and be ambushed by a dis- 
ease that at home was regarded as a trifling affliction 
of childhood, was a source of real humiliation. 

About December 14th orders were received to 
transfer the regiment to Washington. The transfer 
was anything but a pleasure jaunt. Instead of the 
commodious and comfortable passenger coaches, the 
ordinary box freight cars were used, and packed in 
there, that cold December night of transfer was truly 
one of misery. The cars were seatless, consequently 
the Turkish style of sitting had to be adopted by all 
who did not prefer to stand or were so fortunate as 
to obtain a seat in the side doors from which the feet 
could swing with freedom. The night was exceed- 
ingly chilly and with no facilities for warmth the dis- 
comfort was at the maximum. The day following, 
the regiment arrived at Washington, where it was 
lodged for the night in the "Soldiers' retreat," the 
hard floors of which were as downy pillows to our 
wearied and cold stiffened limbs. The next day we 
marched out of the city, passing the Capitol, and 
formed camp near the Bladensburg road. It was now 
the dead of winter, a Washington winter, with fre- 
quent storms of rain, sleet and snow. The camp was 
on the lowlands and the regiment experienced to the 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 1 5 

full the disagreeableness of the mud and slush of "My 
Maryland." Here we had our first introduction to the 
Sibley tent, a species of canvas tepee of the western 
Indian pattern, each of which afforded shelter to a 
dozen men. A small sheet iron stove, with the pipe 
braced against the center pole, diffused warmth, while 
a hole in the canvas at the apex afforded an exit for 
the pungent smoke of the green pine used for fuel. 

It was while in camp at this place we first heard 
the booming of the enemy's guns away to the west- 
ward across the Potomac. These deep notes were of 
such frequent recurrence that all were fully convinced 
that a battle was in progress. Steed-like "we snuffed 
the battle from afar," and many were the expressed 
fears that victory would perch upon our banners, and 
the war be ended ere we should reach the Virginia 
shores. 

Alas ! poor, ignorant mortals that we were ! Little 
dreaming of what scenes of carnage and hot battle we 
should be called to witness before the last notes of the 
hostile guns should be heard. The next morning the 
papers brought us the news of the battle of Dranes- 
ville and the repulse of the enemy, and our sorrow 
was deep and loud spoken, that we were not forwarded 
and permitted, at once, to put an end to this southern 
fracas ! Such was our confidence of easy victory ! 

While in this camp the measles again broke out in 
the regiment. Many of the men had contracted severe 
colds during that night of dismal ride from Harris- 
burg, and cases of pneumonia were numerous, many 
proving fatal, while others lingered for months in 



1 6 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

hospitals, either to be discharged on account of dis- 
ability or to again return to their companies mere 
wrecks of their former selves. 

In February, 1862, the regiment broke camp, and 
crossing the Potomac, took its place in the left wing 
of the army near Fort Lyon, below Alexandria. Here 
in the organization of the army it was assigned to 
Jameson's brigade of Heintzelman's division, which 
later, upon the organization of the army corps, con- 
stituted the first brigade, first division, third corps, 
commanded respectively by Generals Jameson, Hamil- 
ton and Heintzelman, General Hamilton later being 
superseded in division command by that intrepid and 
fearless fighter, General Philip Kearny, whom the 
enemy dubbed with the uneuphoneous soubriquet of 
the "One Armed Devil." The brigade as then organ- 
ized consisted of the 57th, 63d, 105th Pennsylvania 
regiments and the 87th New York, and from that date 
so long as the old Third corps existed these Pennsyl- 
vania regiments retained their place side by side. 
Our associations were most pleasant, many last friend- 
ships were formed, and the courage of each was ever 
held in highest esteem by the others. 

On March 1st, Colonel Maxwell resigned his com- 
mission as colonel of the regiment and was succeeded 
by Colonel Charles T. Campbell. Colonel Campbell 
was by education and choice an artillerist, and had 
seen service on that arm in the Mexican war. He had 
had command of a battery of Pennsylvania artilley in 
the three months' service, and had been commissioned 
by Governor Curtin colonel of artilley and had re- 




Military service of GEN. CHARLES T. CAMPBELL. Born it) Franklin 
County. Pa., in 1822. 

Succeeded Col. William Maxwell in command of the 57th Pennsylvania 
Volunteers. Col. Campbell was a veteran of two wars, the war with 
Mexico, under Taylor and Scott. He served in the civil war. as Colonel 
Of the 1st Pennsylvania Artillery, and was afterwards assigned to the 57th 

Pi nnsj Ivania Volunteers. I >ied at Scotland, South Dakota, April 15, 1895. 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 1 7 

cruited and organized the first Pennsylvania regiment 
of light artillery as part of the Pennsylvania Reserve 
Corps. When, however, the regiment entered the 
United States' service, such an organization was 
deemed impracticable and the regiment as a compact 
body was disbanded and the batteries assigned to the 
several corps. Thus Colonel Campbell found himself 
a colonel in commission without a command. But he 
was enlisted for the war and with uncomplaining pa- 
triotism he willingly took his place where duty called. 
At the first the members of the regiment were im- 
pressed with the thought that they had "caught a 
Tartar." Tall and commanding in figure, gruff 
voiced and with sanguinary hair and whiskers, the 
colonel did not give the impression of being a weak- 
ling, but it was not long until they began to realize 
that beneath the rough exterior there beat a consid- 
erate and tender heart and in the gruff voice there 
was a soft chord, and soon the name "Charley" was 
more frequently on the lips about the camp fires than 
the more stately title of "Colonel." These character- 
istics of the new commander were manifested in many 
acts that the men appreciated. He was always ready 
to take the rough side of soldier life and share priva- 
tions with the rank and file, and at the end of a hard 
day's march he would lie down with only the heavens 
for a covering with any of the boys rather than ask 
a detail to erect his headquarter tents. And many a 
comrade can remember when on camp guard and the 
weather was threatening, hearing that gruff voice 
calling from his tent door: "Officer of the day, re- 
lease the guards and send them into their quarters ! " 



1 8 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 



CHAPTER II. 



BY J. M. MARTIN. 



We Embark for the Peninsula — Yorktown — Camping in the 
Mud — Peach Orchard — Artillery Practice — Battle of Wil- 
liamsburg. 

On the 17th of March the regiment embarked and 
steamed down the Potomac, past Mount Vernon, of 
hallowed memories, on its way to Fortress Monroe, 
whither the army was being transferred to enter upon 
the historic and ill-fated Peninsular campaign. Upon 
arrival it went into camp near the ancient, but then 
recently burned town of Hampton, crumbling brick 
walls and charred chimneys being the only remaining 
monuments to mark the site of the once pleasant vil- 
lage, the beginning, to us, of the scenes of the war's 
"rude desolations," while protruding from the placid 
waters of the bay were to be seen the masts of the 
"Cumberland," that but a few days before had gone 
down with flag flying before the onset of the ram 
"Merrimac," while over by the Ripraps peacefully 
floated low on the waters the little "Monitor" that. 
David-like, had single-handed put to flight this 
Goliath of the rebellion, that had defied our navy; a 
veritable "tub on a plank." 

On the morning of April 4 the grand advance 
was begun. Across the narrow neck of land that 
divided the waters of the Chesapeake and James, the 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 1 9 

magnificent hosts of the Army of the Potomac, 
stretching from shore to shore, moved forward to the 
fortified post of the enemy at Yorktown. Battlefields, 
like history, repeat themselves. It is said the plains of 
Esdraelon have been the theater of a greater number 
of conflicts at arms than any other known portion of 
the globe, so here at Yorktown, where the Sons of 
Virginia, Pennsylvania and others of the thirteen 
colonies humbled the British under Cornwallis in 
1781, and whose lines of entrenchments were yet 
visible, were again to meet in 1862, the sons of these 
sires of revolutionary fame, in martial combat, not 
shoulder to shoulder, as then, but in opposing pha- 
lanx. The line of advance of the 57th was by the 
main road leading from Hampton to Yorktown by 
way of Little and Big Bethel, the latter place being 
the scene of General B. F. Butler's unfortunate night 
venture of 1861. 

The afternoon of the second day's march brought 
the advance of the army in front of the enemy's for- 
midable works around Yorktown and along the War- 
wick river. For the space of nearly a mile, immedi- 
ately in front of the town, the country was open, 
scarcely a tree or a shrub impeding the view of the 
fortifications, whose embrasures bristled with heavy 
ordnance. With drums beating and colors flying we 
marched boldly along the way and filing off into the 
open fields deliberately proceeded to pitch our tents 
and make our camp in the very jaws, as it were, of 
these frowning batteries. Whether it was a fear of 
bringing on a general engagement, or amazement at 



20 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

our audacity that kept the Confederates quiet behind 
their earth-works we did not then know, but subse- 
quent events proved the former to be the cause. Not 
until the day following did they manifest a disposition 
to disturb our repose, and then only by. a solitary shot 
that plunged into one of our company's streets, bury- 
ing itself deep in the soft earth. This shot was suf- 
ficient, however, to admonish us of the fact that they 
had a perfect range of our camp, and could, of they 
chose, make it exceedingly uncomfortable for us. As 
a result we very deliberately withdrew, without the 
loss of a tent or knapsack, back to the main line in 
the woods, though not wholly beyond the range of 
their guns. 

Once in our established camp there began a month 
of as arduous duty as untried soldiers were ever called 
to perform. Digging trenches, constructing earth- 
works, and picket duty, kept us constantly engaged, 
and to add to our discomfort the weather was ex- 
tremely unpleasant; frequent rains wetting us to the 
skin and rendering the earth about the consistency of 
a mortar bed. Of this time Surgeon Lyman writes: 
"Here for three weeks the men walked in mud, slept 
in mud and drank water from holes scooped out of the 
mud. The combined remonstrances of the medical 
officers of the brigade, 'that a month's continuance in 
that place would deprive the government of the ser- 
vices of one-half of its members,' were met by the 
silencing reply, 'It is a military necessity.' The re- 
sult showed that our fears were well founded. The 
malaria of the marshes and swamps of Yorktown, 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 21 

with the excessive labor performed in the trenches 
and on picket duty, debilitated our men for months, 
sending dozens of them to their graves, and rendering 
hundreds unfit for service, and many for life." 

Here we had our first experience with the wild 
garlic, which grew spontaneously in the uncultivated 
fields and after a day or two's pasturing rendered the 
flesh of the beeves unpalatable, the taste of the garlic 
remaining long in the mouth after the act of mastica- 
tion. Here, too, the regiment had its baptismal of 
blood, in the known to us, though never historically 
christened, "Battle of the Peach Orchard." 

On the afternoon of April 1 1 the 63d Pennsylva- 
nia Volunteers, while on picket duty in the woods to 
the left of the Yorktown road, was attacked by the 
enemy. The 57th was ordered to its assistance and 
advancing at double quick, formed in line of battle, 
moving over the open field in face of a hot fire and 
quickly putting to flight the qolumns of the enemy, 
driving them back to the protection of their heavy 
batteries. In this short but exciting engagement, the 
regiment lost by wounds two men, Samuel Merven, of 
Company E, and John Cochran, of Company F. 
Cochran subsequently died from the effects of his 
wound and Merven was discharged. In this engage- 
ment, insignificant as it was, compared with its after 
battles, the regiment exhibited great coolness and gave 
token of its ability and readiness for future duty and 
service. 

An incident occurred about this date, while the 
regiment was on picket duty, that is worthy of passing 



22 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

notice. Lieutenant Wagner, of the topographic engi- 
neers, was engaged in making drawings of the Con- 
federate works. He had placed a camp table in an 
exposed position and spread his drafting material 
upon it. The white paper made an excellent target 
for the enemy's gunners. One of their shots struck 
the table and fatally wounded the lieutenant. A few 
moments after he rode along the rear of our lines, his 
shattered and bleeding arm dangling at his side. This 
shot is referred to, after these many years, by General 
Longstreet in his recent work, as one of two of the 
most remarkable shots, for accuracy of aim, of the 
war. He says : 

"An equally good one (shot) was made by a Con- 
federate at Yorktown. An officer of the topographi- 
cal engineers walked into the open in front of our 
lines, fixed his plane table and seated himself to make 
a map of the Confederate works. A non-commis- 
sioned officer, without orders, adjusted his gun, care- 
fully aimed it, and fired. At the report of the gun all 
eyes were turned to see the occasion of it, and then 
to observe the object, when the shell was seen to ex- 
plode as if in the hands of the officer. It had been 
dropped squarely upon the drawing table and Lieu- 
tenant Wagner was mortally wounded." — Gen. Long- 
street, in "From Manassas to Appomattox." 

This shot appears, by a note to the text written by 
Capt. A. B. Moore, of Richmond, Va., to have been 
fired by Corporal Holzbudon, of the 2d company, 
Richmond Howitzers, from a ten-pound parrott gun. 

Another incident more immediately connected 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 23 

with the regiment, worthy of a place in its history 
as an exhibition of accurate firing, occurred here. On 
the left of our regimental picket line was stationed a 
section of a field battery whose duty was to shell the 
enemy's works and prevent their annoying our lines. 
For some time Colonel Campbell watched with mani- 
fest disgust the green cannoneers blazing away at 
random, and with evidently little effect. At length 
stepping to one of the guns the colonel said : 

"Boys, let me sight this gun for you." Running 
his eye along the sights and giving the elevating 
screw a turn, he said : 

"Now, let her go ! " 

In an instant the death-dealing missile was speed- 
ing on its way, entered the enclosure and exploded 
amid the startled gunners of the enemy. 

"There, boys, that's the way to shoot. Don't 
waste your powder!" said the colonel, as he turned 
and walked away, an expression of satisfaction 
wreathing his florid face. 

By the 3d of May all things were in readiness to 
open our batteries of big guns on the Confederate for- 
tifications and all were in excited expectation of the 
bombardment and possible storming of the enemy's 
works on the following day, but the morning light 
of the 4th revealed the enemy's strong works aban- 
doned and empty. In the night, Johnson, who had 
superseded Magruder in command, like the Arab had 
"folded his tent and silently stolen away." The 105th 
Pennsylvania were the first to enter the abandoned 
works. The news of the evacuation of the works and 



24 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

retreat of the Confederates spread rapidly from regi- 
ment to regiment, and our bloodless victory, but not 
without the loss of many a brave boy, was celebrated 
with wild shouts and cheers. The cavalry followed 
closely on the heels of the retreating enemy, but the 
infantry did not take up the line of march until later 
in the day; Fighting Joe Hooker's division following 
first, with Kearny close in his rear. As we marched 
through the Confederate works, stakes planted up- 
right in the ground with red danger signals attached 
gave warning that near them were planted torpedoes, 
placed there for the injury of the unwary by the 
enemy. 

A story was told at the time that the planting of 
these torpedoes was revealed to Lieut. R. P. Craw- 
ford, of Company E, of the 57th, then serving as aid 
on General Jameson's staff, by a Confederate deserter. 
That the 105th Pennsylvania, being about to enter the 
abandoned works, this Confederate stepped out from 
the shelter of a building, and, throwing up his hands 
as an indication that he desired to surrender, came 
forward and revealed to Lieutenant Crawford, who 
chanced to be present, the secret danger that threat- 
ened them if they attempted to enter the works with- 
out caution. Thus forewarned of their danger, a 
squad of prisoners, under compulsion, were made to 
search out, and locate these concealed missiles, thereby 
preventing possible loss of life and woundings. 

During the afternoon of the 4th the regiment 
marched with the division about four miles on the 
main road to Williamsburg and bivouacked for the 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 25 

night. By dark rain began to fall and continued 
throughout the night and the day following. The 
early morning of the 5th found us on the march again. 
The rain had thoroughly soaked the light clay soil and 
the preceding ammunition trains and batteries had 
worked the soft clay roads into deep ruts and numer- 
ous mud holes. To take to the fields and roadsides 
did not better much the marching, the unsodded fields 
being little better than quagmires, in which the men 
floundered to the knees. 

All the forenoon there was now and then cannon- 
ading to our front with occasional rattle of musketry, 
indicative of skirmishing, but by two or three o'clock 
there came the long swelling roar of infantry firing, 
giving evidence that our advance had overtaken the 
enemy and they were making a stubborn stand. The 
atmospheric conditions were such that from these 
sounds the battle appeared to be but a mile or two in 
our advance, and at every turn of the way we expected 
to see the blue line of smoke and snuff the odors of 
burning powder, while in fact the engagement was five 
or six miles distant. Reaching a point about two 
miles from the battlefield the regiment was ordered 
to unsling knapsacks, doff blankets and overcoats and 
march at quick step to the front. As we neared the 
field, panting from our exertion, we passed a brass 
band standing by the roadside. General Heintzelman, 
observing them as he passed, exclaimed in that nasal 
twang so familiar to all : 

"Play, boys, play! Play Hail Columbia! Play 
Yankee Doodle! Play anything! Play like h — 1!" 



26 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

It is needless to add that the band promptly obeyed 
and the strains of the national quickstep put a new- 
spring in our weary limbs, revived our flagging spirits 
and with a rousing cheer we pressed forward. Arriv- 
ing on the field the regiment was deployed in line of 
battle in the woods to the right of the road, but dark- 
ness was settling over the field, the firing soon ceased 
and we were not engaged. The night following was 
extremely disagreeable. The rain continued to fall, 
and drenched to the skin we lay on our arms all night 
without fire, blankets or rations. By morning the low- 
ering clouds were gone, and so also were the Johnnies, 
leaving their dead unburied and their wounded to our 
tender care. Many private houses of the ancient town, 
all of the churches and that venerable seat of learn- 
ing, from whose halls came many of the nation's most 
eminent statesmen and patriots, William and Mary 
College, were turned into hospitals, where friend and 
foe were gathered from the field of conflict, housed. 
and cared for by our surgeons and nurses with undis- 
criminating attention. 

An incident that well illustrates the reckless dar- 
ing of General Kearny, and which ultimately lost him 
to our cause, as well as the influence of such acts upon 
others, occurred during this engagement. During the 
battle, General Kearny, accompanied by General Jame- 
son, rode out to the front, and on an open piece of 
ground, in full view of the contending forces, the two 
sat there observing the progress of the battle, appar- 
ently oblivious of the fact that they were exposing 
themselves as targets to the enemy's sharpshooters. 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 27 

Past them the minie balls were zipping, while the air 
was redolent with the "ting" of musket balls and buck- 
shot. At length, satisfied with their observations, they 
coolly turned their horses about and rode to the rear. 
The day following, General Jameson was approached 
by one of his aides who had witnessed the act, who 
said to him : 

"General, don't you think the risk you and Gen- 
eral Kearny exposed yourselves to yesterday was un- 
justifiable?" 

"I certainly do," the general candidly replied. 

"Then why did you take the risk?" the aide 
queried. 

"Captain," said the general, gravely, "If I had 
been conscious that I would have been hit the next 
minute I would not have turned my horse's head. 
Why, what would Kearny have thought of me ! " 

After the battle the regiment camped immediately 
west of town. Of course the commands that had 
borne the brunt of the battle were lionized, as were 
also those officers who had acted a conspicuous part. 
On this field General Hancock received his chief sobri- 
quet, "The Superb," which clung to him throughout 
life. Regimental ranks, after a hard day's fighting, 
often were very much broken, the losses not always 
being catalogued as of the killed and wounded; roll 
calls exhibiting many names marked "missing," or 
"absent without leave." These absentees invariably 
reported fearful losses in their commands. While in 
camp at Williamsburg a strapping big fellow with 
turbaned head, blue jacket profusely decorated with 



-<a* 



28 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

gold lace, and baggy red trousers, wandered into our 
midst. 

"Hello! What regiment?" one of the boys in- 
quired. 

" regiment." 

"But what state?" 

"New York, of course." 

"In the fight?" 

"Yep. All cut to pieces. I'm the only one left ! " 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 29 



CHAPTER III. 

BY J. M. MARTIN. 

Battle of Fair Oaks — Death of Major Culp — Increasing Sick 
List — Advancing Our Lines — The Seven Days' Battles — 
Glendale or Charles City Cross Roads — The Fifty-Seventh 
Under Captain Maxwell as Rear Guard — Malvern Hill — 
Retreat to Harrison's Landing. 

On the 7th the army resumed the march "on to 
Richmond," the 57th diverging from the main line to 
Cumberland Landing on the Pamunkey, where for 
several days it guarded the army stores that had been 
shipped by steamer to that point. Afterwards we 
rejoined the brigade at Baltimore Store, and on the 
24th crossed the famous Chickahominy at Bottom's 
bridge and camped on a pine covered bluff to the left 
of the railroad, a short distance from the river and 
near Savage station. 

As soldiers we knew little of the danger that con- 
fronted us, and nothing of the councils being held by 
the enemy plotting our discomfiture. This knowl- 
edge was reserved for us until the 31st. On that 
day about one o'clock, just after the regiment had its 
midday ration, like a clap of thunder out of a clear 
sky the crash of musketry came to our ears from the 
front. Casey's division of Key's corps, which had 
pushed about three miles to our front, and had erected 
some slight fortifications near Fair Oaks station, had 
been suddenly and fiercely attacked by overpowering 
numbers. For what seemed to us hours, that probably 



30 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

did not exceed minutes, we stood listening to the crash 
and roar of the battle. Soon the long roll was beaten, 
the bugle blast sounded, the order to "fall in" was 
given, and we knew our hour had come. Forming 
in line with the other regiments of the brigade, we 
were soon on the march toward the front at a quick- 
step. Taking the line of the railroad, and the sound 
of the battle for our guide, we pressed on. Nearing 
the battlefield we began to meet the scattered and 
retreating men of Casey's division, many of them 
wounded and bleeding, but the majority suffering 
only from panic. Among this fleeing and panic- 
stricken mass, field and staff officers rode, seeking to 
stay their flight and reform their broken lines. Gen- 
eral Kearny rode among them shouting, "This is not 
the road to Richmond, boys." Approaching nearer 
the field of battle the lines assumed a more defiant 
order, and it was evident that the greater mass of the 
troops were nobly standing, and lustily cheered us 
as we passed. A short distance beyond Fair Oaks 
station the brigade was deployed in line of battle in 
an open field to the right of the railroad. The thick 
woods to our front afforded an excellent cover for the 
enemy's sharpshooters, of which they speedily availed 
themselves, field and staff officers being their tempt- 
ing targets. In a few moments orders were received 
to move to the left. There was a slight cut at the 
point of crossing the railway track and under the 
sharp fire from the enemy there was some confusion 
in making the crossing. While effecting this move- 
ment Major Culp was instantly killed and several of 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 3 1 

the line wounded. After crossing to the left of the 
railroad the brigade was again formed in line, face 
front, and stood waiting orders to advance. Immedi- 
ately in our front was a "slashing," several rods in 
width. Beyond that was standing timber quite open. 
We were not long waiting orders and soon were mov- 
ing cautiously forward, scrambling over and through 
the felled timber. Once beyond the "slashing," our 
lines that had become disarranged were again formed. 
From our position we could see an open field beyond, 
across which extended a line of Confederate infantry, 
their compact ranks presenting a fine mark and in 
easy range of our Austrian rifles, with which we 
were then armed. Colonel Campbell, who had dis- 
mounted, having left his horse beyond the "slashing," 
standing a few paces to the rear of the column, in 
low, but distinct tone gave the command, "Ready! 
Aim! Fire!" 

Every gun in the line responded. What the exe- 
cution was is not known, the smoke from our pieces 
completely excluding our view, but that every Johnnie 
had not bitten dust was soon evident from the lively 
manner in which they sent their missiles amongst us 
in very brief time. After the first volley the regi- 
ment loaded and fired "at will," the men seeking 
cover behind logs and trees as best they could from 
the enemy's returning compliments. How long this 
duel was maintained it is impossible to state, as the 
occasion was such that to take note of passing time 
was out of question. The troops holding the extreme 
right of our line at length gave way, and the enemy, 



32 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

seizing the opportunity, threw forward a strong flank- 
ing column that soon began a severe enfilading fire that 
compelled us to fall back obliquely to avoid a retreat 
through the slashing, and take a position in the woods 
beyond the open field in which we first formed. This 
closed the fighting for the day, and night soon settled 
over the scene, and while we had met with reverses, 
yet we were encouragingly satisfied, for the enemy 
had not succeeded in his purpose, by overwhelming 
numbers, to drive us into the Chickahominy before 
reinforcement could come to our aid from the north 
side. That night we slept on our arms, without tents 
or blankets, for these we had left in our camp to the 
rear. During the night Sumner's corps succeeded in 
crossing the river, swollen by recent rains, and by day- 
break was on the field, and engaging the enemy, drove 
him back to the shelter of his works about Richmond. 
The regiment lost severely in this engagement. Col- 
onel Campbell was dangerously wounded in the groin 
and while being carried to the rear was again shot in 
the arm. Major Culp, as before stated, was killed, 
and Captain Chase, of Company K, mortally wounded. 
The loss in the line was eleven killed and forty-nine 
wounded. The command of the regiment now de- 
volved on Lieutenant Colonel Woods, and Captain 
Simonton of Company B, was promoted to the rank 
of major. The battle was immediately followed by 
heavy rain storms. Tents and camp equipage were 
back in the rear and were not forwarded for two or 
three days. In the meantime the men stood about, 
drenched to the skin, or sat upon logs drying their 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 33 

saturated clothing upon their backs in the hot sun- 
shine that interspersed the showers. The earth was 
soaked with water, which for lack of springs or wells, 
was used for drinking and cooking purposes, it only 
being necessary to dig a shallow hole anywhere to 
gather the needed supply. The damp hot weather 
brought about rapid decomposition of the dead and 
unburied animals and the chance bodies of friend or 
foe who had fallen in "slashing" or thicket and thus 
remained undiscovered, produced a sickening stench. 
These causes soon produced much sickness and the 
swamp fevers carried many to the hospitals, some 
never to return. Rumors of the renewal of hostilities, 
possibly by night attack, kept the army constantly on 
the alert, and our accouterments were rarely taken 
off night or day; orders being issued to sleep in shoes 
ready to "fall out" and "into line" at a moment's 
notice. On one occasion a kicking mule was the inno- 
cent cause of a hasty mustering of our forces, to the 
great chagrin of the weary and sleepy soldiery. 

General Hooker, ever anxious for fight and adven- 
ture, made an advance on his own motion, in which 
he was actively supported by General Kearny, pushing 
his lines close up to the enemy's defenses, so that from 
a lookout station established in the top of a large tree 
the church spires and steeples of the coveted Confeder- 
ate capital could plainly be seen. But this movement 
was not in accord with General McClellan's plan of 
campaign. The position was hazardous in the extreme, 
inviting another onset by the enemy, and we were 
soon withdrawn to our original lines and the shelter 



34 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

of our breastworks. This was our nearest approach 
to Richmond until after Appomattox in the spring of 
1865. Amid these scenes of constant picket duty, dig- 
ging rifle-pits, and building fortifications the regiment 
passed the month of June. On the 26th the sound of 
heavy firing on the extreme right came to our ears all 
the afternoon. The enemy in our front was exceed- 
ingly vigilant and we drew the fire of their pickets on 
the slightest exposure. Late in the evening loud cheer- 
ing was heard to our right, and the report was circu- 
lated, and credited, that that wing of our army had 
carried the Confederate defenses to the north of the 
city, and we lustily joined our comrades, as we sup- 
posed, in their shout of victory. But, alas ! for the 
truthfulness of camp rumors! It was all a mistake; 
our lines had only successfully repulsed the enemy's 
repeated assaults at Mechanicsville ! That was all. 
The next day, the 27th, the battle was renewed at 
Gaines Mill, a little nearer to our position. The day 
following, the 28th, our immediate line withdrew 
from its advanced position and stood ready to repel 
any attack that might be made on the battle-worn 
troops of Porter and Warren as they slowly filed 
across the Chickahominy to the south side. Late in 
the afternoon General Kearny directed the distribu- 
tion to each man of one hundred and fifty rounds of 
ammunition (more than twice our usual allowance), 
and also that each officer in his command should place 
a red patch in conspicuous view upon his hat or cap. 
What to do with the superfluous ammunition was a 
question, and called forth many uncomplimentary 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 35 

remarks, some even suggesting that it was intended 
to relieve the mules of the ammunition trains by mak- 
ing pack-horses of the soldiery. But we had not long 
to wait to know the real cause and the wisdom of it, 
and glad were we to have the extra cartridges for 
convenient use! The red patch order also proved an 
important event in army history, in that it was the be- 
ginning of the corps badge so popular and useful in 
the after years of the war. The afternoon of the next 
day, the 29th, after a day of anxious waiting and 
expectancy, the regiment took up the line of march, 
with the crash of the battle of Savage station ring- 
ing in their ears, southward across the White Oak 
swamp. Late in the evening we filed off upon a by- 
road leading at right angles to the road on which 
we were moving. Soon we reached a wide swamp, 
across which had recently been constructed a cause- 
way, or bridge of logs laid in the mud and water 
side by side, and which was perhaps twenty rods in 
length. Without hesitation the regiment marched 
out upon this bridge. When the head of the column 
had about reached the opposite end it was fired upon 
by the enemy's pickets. Here was a dilemma calcu- 
lated to try the nerve of the bravest. What the ene- 
my's force was none knew, but anyone could realize 
the terrible slaughter that might be wrought had a 
section of artillery been turned upon that narrow road- 
way with a swamp of unknown depth on either side. 
General Kearny, with his accustomed daring, was at 
the head of the column. Turning about, he rode back 
along the line, his face grave, but calm. "Keep quiet, 



36 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

boys, keep quiet. Don't be alarmed. About face and 
move to the rear ! " he said as he passed. Every 
man in the regiment seemed to realize the gravity of 
the situation, and that upon his personal coolness 
depended the safety of the retreat, and without noise 
or confusion the regiment "about faced" and soon was 
back on the road from which we had strayed. That 
night we bivouacked without tents or fires, wrapping 
ourselves in our blankets, and, lying down, star gazed 
until our eyes closed in slumber. 

The 30th dawned hot and sultry, and as the men 
trudged along under the fierce glare of the sun, and 
their burden of knapsack, haversack, and extra ammu- 
nition, many succumbed and fell out of the ranks. 
Arriving at the intersection of the Charles City road 
with that upon which we were marching about mid- 
day, the regiment filed to the right into an open field, 
stacked arms and broke ranks. Some of our number 
sought rest in convenient shade, others busied them- 
selves building fires and cooking coffee. In all our 
surroundings there was not a sign of the enemy's 
presence, or that from the cover of the woods beyond 
the field his scouts were watching our every move- 
ment. Cannonading from the direction whence we 
had come gave evidence that he was yet beyond the 
dismal swamps through which we had passed the day 
before, and the rank and file at least was not aware that 
a strong force was at that moment marching upon our 
line from the west with a purpose to intercept us on 
our way toward the James. To the left of us a sec- 
tion of Randolph's battery stood unlimbered, a cir- 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 37 

cumstance rare to be seen while on the march, and to 
the old soldiers suggestive of possible battle, but the 
gunners were lolling upon their pieces or sitting about 
the ground chatting, apparently indifferent, and if they 
were so, why need others feel concern? Thus time 
passed until 2 o'clock p. m., when suddenly one of 
those unlimbered pieces, with a crash that brought 
every man to his feet, sent a screaming shell far out 
over the woods beyond. This defiant shot seemed at 
once to be accepted by the enemy as a challenge to 
action, for immediately there followed a spattering 
discharge of musketry along our front, the bugle notes 
sounded and the command to "fall in" rang out along 
the lines. 

"And there was mounting in hot haste, the steed, 
The mustering squadrons, and the clattering car 

Went pouring forth with impetuous speed, 
And swiftly forming in the ranks of war; 

And deep thunder, peal on peal, afar; 
And near, the beat of the alarming drum 

Roused up the soldiers." 

In advancing to take our position in the line of 
battle each man seized a rail of a convenient fence that 
stood in the way, and when halted, out of these con- 
structed an improvised shelter, behind which we 
crouched to meet and repel the enemy's desperate 
onslaughts. From that hour until darkness covered 
the scene, the battle raged furiously and almost inces- 
santly. Charge after charge was made upon our lines, 
often coming so near that faces were clearly discern- 
ible through the smoke of battle, so determined was 
the enemy to break our lines and reach the road in our 



38 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

rear, over which our wagon trains and unengaged 
forces were pressing toward the James river. 

Perhaps in no battle of the war was there so long 
and continuous fighting by the same troops as in this 
engagement. It was all important that the army- 
should be safely guarded past this most vulnerable 
point, and posted on the river bluffs and under the 
protection of our gunboats. The enemy, as well, 
seemed to realize the need of breaking our lines or 
lose the fruits of their victory purchased at such fear- 
ful cost, and therefore pressed our line hard and con- 
tinuously, so that if disposed to do so, there was 
little time given to relieve us by the substitution of 
other troops. 

In this engagement Major Simonton was wounded 
in the shoulder about 6 o'clock in the evening. Lieu- 
tenant Colonel Woods was absent on sick leave, and 
the command of the regiment devolved upon Captain 
Ralph Maxwell, of Company F. Before midnight the 
troops were withdrawn from the line of battle and 
were on the march to Malvern Hill, the place of ren- 
dezvous of the army, near the James river. As we 
moved quietly along in the darkness General Kearny 
rode up and asked Captain Maxwell what regiment 
we were. When informed, he complimented us very 
highly for the part we had taken in the recent battle, 
then ordered him to return us to our old position and 
hold it until daylight, when he would have us relieved. 
We "about faced" and were soon back in our old place 
as nearly as could be determined in the darkness. The 
supposition was that the whole brigade was with us 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 39 

and we did not discover differently until an hour or 
more later. Of this occurrence Captain Maxwell says : 
"I thought along toward midnight I would go and 
have a talk with whoever commanded the 105th. I 
went to the right of the 57th, but could find no one; 
all was vacancy. I immediately retraced my steps and, 
passing to the left, found the 63d gone also. Nobody 
there but one poor, little, lone regiment ! It then came 
to me that we were placed there to be sacrificed for the 
safety of the rest of the army. I knew the penalty for 
violating General Kearny's orders, but at the same 
time I could not think of sacrificing these men to cer- 
tain capture and imprisonment. I did not like to break 
orders and I could not do the other. Soon after we 
heard the trundle of artillery, and the tread of the 
marching men to our front, and then lights gleaming 
to our front. Evidently this was the enemy. I made up 
my mind I would try and save the regiment, orders 
or no orders, and let them court-martial me and be 
d — d. I ordered the regiment to form silently in two 
ranks, then gave the order to march and file right. 
They did so and all filed past me and got on the road. 
I then ran along the line to the head of the regiment 
and gave the order to double quick, and we went 
down that road on the run, and none too soon. Five 
minutes more and we would have been prisoners ! We 
caught up to the main body of the army and took our 
usual position in the brigade. I was afraid to ask 
any questions and never heard anything about our dis- 
obedience of orders. But one thing is certain, I am 
glad I did what I did that night!" 



40 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

In this engagement our regiment lost seven killed 
and fifty-six wounded, a number of whom subse- 
quently died. 

The next morning found the regiment in line on 
Malvern Hill. This position was almost impregnable. 
On the south side flowed the James river on which 
floated the Union fleet of gunboats. On the north side 
was an impenetrable swamp. To attack, the Confed- 
erates had to charge from the west and in our front 
over long stretches of open ground in the face of our 
batteries posted along the hill side, their right flank 
enfiladed by the fire from our gunboats. General Por- 
ter, speaking of the strength of this position, says that 
when by inspections he realized its natural advantages, 
and had seen his division properly posted, he returned 
to the Malvern House, where he had established his 
headquarters, and, lying down on a cot, dropped at 
once into so sound a sleep, that although the battle 
following surged up to the front yard of the house, he 
was not awakened, although at any other time during 
the campaign the snap of a cap would rouse him in- 
stantly, so great was his sense of the security of his 
position. Notwithstanding these natural advantages, 
the elated, but weary forces of Jackson, Longstreet, 
and Hill, reinforced by the fresh troops of Magruder 
and Hugar, charged and recharged our lines with 
desperate persistence deserving of a better cause, but 
each time were repulsed with fearful slaughter. The 
losses of the 57th in this engagement were two killed 
and eight wounded, Lieutenant Charles O. Etz and 
the orderly sergeant of Company D being the two 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 41 

fatal casualties. The death of Lieutenant Etz and his 
companion occurred under peculiarly sad circum- 
stances. Wearied with the battle of the preceding 
afternoon and the night vigil following, these two 
comrades had lain down together, the sergeant's head 
resting on the lieutenant's breast, and were snatching 
a moment's sleep. A shot from one of the enemy's 
batteries struck the two sleepers, killing them in- 
stantly. Thus, all unconscious of their danger, they 
were swept by one swift stroke into that sleep that 
knows no waking. 

The battle over and the enemy severely chastised, 
the grand Army of the Potomac, with thinned and 
broken ranks, a mere shadow of its former greatness, 
continued the retreat, Harrison's Landing, a place of 
historic importance in that the line of its occupants 
has given to our country two chief executives, lying 
a few miles below Malvern Hill on the James, being 
the place selected for final rendezvous. During the 
night following the battle the 57th was again on out- 
post duty, but early the following morning was quietly 
withdrawn and in a drenching rain that continued 
throughout the day, again took up its wearisome 
march, arriving in the vicinity of the landing toward 
evening, weary, wet and worn! 

The Harrison mansion, a substantial structure ot 
brick, reared in colonial days, stood on an eminence 
overlooking the broad sweep of the James river. 
Between the mansion and the river was a stretch of 
grass-covered field gently sloping to the water's edge. 
Adjoining this to the west, or northwest, was a large 



42 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

wheat field. A greater part of the standing grain 
had been cut and was in shock. These golden sheaves 
were quickly appropriated by our troops and spread 
upon the water-sodden ground, whereon to rest their 
weary bodies. A few brief hours sufficed to obliterate 
every trace of this harvest scene, and where the hus- 
bandman had so recently been reaping in peace the 
fruits of his field, batteries were now thickly packed 
and soldiers' tents, not white, but wet and earth soiled, 
stood in long ranks. 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 43 



CHAPTER IV. 

BY J. M. MARTIN. 

Camp Life at Harrison's Landing — Major Birney Assigned 
to the Command of the Regiment — Transferred to Gen- 
eral Birney's Brigade — Evacuation of Harrison's Land- 
ing and the Peninsula — The Army of the Potomac is 
Sent to Reenforce General Pope. 

The regiment, upon its arrival at Harrison's Land- 
ing, presented a most pitiable spectable. But three 
months before it numbered almost nine hundred; now 
but little over half a hundred responded for duty at 
first roll-call, and there was not a field officer present. 
Says Surgeon Lyman : "All were exhausted and dis- 
heartened, scarcely a well man in the regiment, with 
two hundred and thirty, for the first few days, on the 
sick list." For a time Captain Ralph Maxwell was 
in command of the regiment, but was succeeded later 
by Captain Strohecker. Funerals were of such fre- 
quent occurrence that the solemn notes of the dead 
march were almost continually to be heard, until, for 
the benefit of the living, burials with military honors 
were suppressed by general order. To the great an- 
noyance of brigade commanders they could muster 
no more men for brigade drill than would compose 
an ordinary battalion; the regiments presenting no 
better appearance as to numbers than a companv. and 
a company than a corporal's guard. As a consequence 
there were frequent charges of "shirking duty" pre- 



44 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

ferred, and the officers of the line watched and 
counted with greatest care their rolls for available 
men. An amusing anecdote of this watchful regard 
of the superior officers is told by Colonel Strohecker. 
He says : 

"For a few days our regiment was attached to the 
63d, and under the command of Colonel Alexander 
Hayes. On one occasion he had the two regiments 
"fall in," and passing along the line counted the men 
in each company with great care, comparing their 
number with the adjutant's report which he held in 
his hand. When he counted my company I lacked 
three men to fill the report, and then the colonel com- 
menced cursing me for reporting more men than I 
turned out. I replied that I did not report more men 
than I had in line. At this he exhibited to me the 
adjutant's report and said he would see me later. 
True enough, there were three more men reported for 
duty on the adjutant's report than I had turned out. 
The figures were against me. He dismissed me and 
I went to my quarters crestfallen. I took up my 
morning report book, and discovered there was a 
mistake somewhere. My morning report and the 
number of men I had in line tallied exactly. I im- 
mediately called upon the colonel and armed with my 
morning report proved that I was right. He called 
his adjutant and asked him to explain. That officer 
replied that in consolidating the company reports he 
could not make them agree, so he just put three more 
men to my account! "What!" exclaimed the colonel. 
"You falsify the morning report of a captain and 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 45 

his orderly? I'll let you know'" and then the very 
air seemed blue ! To me he only said, "Captain won't 
you have a drink?" 

General Kearny was no admirer of a rifle-pit cam- 
paign. "An open field and a fair fight," was more to 
the pleasing of the military taste of this intrepid com- 
mander; he was, therefore, loth to have his troops 
exhausted with the labor of their construction, and as 
occasion offered was not slow to so express himself. 
One quiet Sabbath morning, while in camp at this 
place, a detail from the 57th was on its way, armed 
with pick and spade, to this duty. As they trudged 
along their way Kearny met them, and, returning 
the salute of the lieutenant commanding the squad, 
inquired : 

"Lieutenant, where are these men going?" 

"To work on the breastworks, general," replied 
the officer. 

"About face your men, and return to your quar- 
ters," sharply replied the general. "Six days in the 
week are enough to work on fortifications. These 
men need their Sunday rest!" 

It is needless to say the order was promptly obeyed 
and regard for their commander rose several degrees 
in the estimation of these weary veterans. 

The camp of the regiment was near a fine stream 
of water on which was erected a dam that afforded 
the men most excellent bathing opportunities, which 
doubtless contributed much to their general health 
besides personal cleanliness. Ovens were also built 
and for a time they enjoyed the luxury of "soft 



46 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

bread." There was, however, a dearth of vegetables, 
and aside from an occasional ration of onions, and 
that conglomeration of pumpkin, squash, etc., com- 
pounded under the euphoneous name of "dessicated 
vegetables," but which the boys derisively dubbed 
"desecrated vegetables," green truck was unknown in 
their daily bill of fare, in consequence of which 
diarrhoea and kindred complaints were prevalent, and 
many disqualified for active duty. 

During the encampment at Harrison's Landing 
Major William Birney, of the 4th New Jersey regi- 
ment, a brother of General David B. Birney, was as- 
signed to the command of the 57th regiment.* Major 
Birney was an officer of rare ability, a strict disciplin- 
arian, an indefatigable drill-master, and withal a gen- 
tleman, winning and courteous to the humblest when 
off duty, and abhorring the petty tyrannies in which 
some officers of brief authority seemed to delight. He 
also enjoyed to the highest degree the confidence of 
his superiors, and very soon won the respect and 
esteem, as well, of the rank and file. A story told 
about the camp fires, whether true or false, well illus- 
trates the characteristics of the man and deserves 
recording. At the breaking out of the war Major 
Birney was commissioned an officer in one of the 
New Jersey regiments composing the New Jersey 
brigade, commanded by General Kearny, but pos- 
sessed of little knowledge of his duties as such, or 
ability to drill his men. On one occasion while at- 
tempting to put his regiment through its evolutions 



* See Appendix D. 




Military services of WILLIAM BIRNEY, of Alabama and New Jersey, 
in l'. S. Volunteers. 

Enlisted, May 20, 1861; Captain, May 22, 1861; Major, Sept, 28, 1861; 

Lieutenant-Colonel, August 26, 1862; Colonel, January 6, 1863; Brigadier- 
General, May 22, 1863; Brevet Major General, March 13, 1865, "for gallant 
and meritorious services during the war." 

Memo. ,i/ w; .-v. ex, rle. 
Captured, June 27, 1862; prisoner of war to August 12. 1862; from Aug- 
ust 14. 1862, to October II. 1862, commanded the 57th Pennsylvania Volun- 
teers, covering the battles of Groveton and Bull Run. of August 3D and 31, 
and the military operations on the Monocacy in September ami October. 
1862; was wounded at Fredericksburg, Dee. 13, L862; commanded Districts 
Of Florida, Hilton Head, the 3d Division of H»th Army Corps and 2d 

Division, 25th Arms Corps. 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 47 

General Kearny chanced to pass, and halting, watched 
the major in his attempts with evident disgust. The 
general was never noted for his patience, especially 
with inefficiency of an officer in his line of duty, and 
riding up to the major, reprimanded him sharply, bid- 
ding him to go to his quarters and never attempt to 
drill his men again until he had mastered the tactics. 
It is said, the major, stung with reproof, went to his 
quarters, not to sulk over this and possibly resign his 
commission, but to study, and when he next appeared 
on drill he was the best informed and most efficient 
drill master in the brigade, receiving the compliments 
of the general, who ever after held him in highest 
esteem. Of the major's persistency, if not his effi- 
ciency, as a drill master, every member of the 57th 
regiment would willingly certify. 

Major Birney's discipline was not confined to camp 
life, and the drill ground. It extended as well to the 
march. Every morning on the march the regular 
detail for guard duty was made, and this detail, under 
command of the officer of the day, marched at the 
rear of the column, and proved an efficient preventive 
to "straggling," a habit exceedingly demoralizing to 
an army on the march. If any fell sick or gave out 
by the way they were taken charge of, and if possi- 
ble, were placed in an ambulance, or in the absence 
of such, in one of the regimental or brigade wagons. 
If canteens needed replenishing a detail was made 
from each company to perform that duty. If forag- 
ing was to be engaged in it was done in the same 
methodical manner, and this was not infrequent, for 



48 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

the major was a strong believer in the doctrine of the 
rights of the army to live off the products of the 
enemy's country, but it had to be done "decently and 
in order." 

When on the march, if an obstruction was encoun- 
tered, the head of the column was always halted until 
all had passed the obstruction and the ranks closed 
up. By this means the men in the rear were saved the 
necessity of moving at a "double quick" to overtake 
those in advance, a duty very exhausting, and as a 
consequence the command was always kept in com- 
pact order and could, with less fatigue, march twenty 
miles a day than ten by the old "go as you please" 
methods so common while on the march. 

During our army's encampment at Harrison's 
Landing the Confederates were quiet and only 
deigned to make their presence known on one oc- 
casion and that was in the way of a night surprise, 
sending by way of a reminder that they were yet 
alive and alert, a number of shells across from the 
heights on the south side of the river. This piece of 
pleasantry was replied to promptly by our batteries, 
and the next day arrangements were made to prevent 
a repetition by sending a division of infantry under 
General Butterfield over to that side and taking pos- 
session of those hills for ourselves. 

On August 1 2th the 57th was transferred from 
Jameson's old brigade (the 1st) to General D. B. 
Birney's (2d) brigade. General Jameson was injured 
by the falling of his horse at Fair Oaks and died from 
his injuries the following November. He was one 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 49 

of the finest looking officers in the army. General J. 
C. Robinson succeeded him in command, and led the 
brigade in the seven days' battles. General Birney was 
one of the original brigade commanders of Kearny's 
division. His brigade now comprised the following 
regiments, viz: the 57th and 99th Pennsylvania; 3d 
and 4th Maine; 38th, 40th and 101st New York. 
There were seven regiments, but numerically, they 
scarcely exceeded the strength of two full regiments. 

On August 15th, the army broke camp and com- 
menced the retrograde movement back through Wil- 
liamsburg and Yorktown, our campaign ground of the 
earlier spring, its ultimate destination being to join 
Pope in his disastrous campaign with headquarters 
"in the saddle." 

The breaking camp of a great army is always a 
stirring scene. The mounted aids and orderlies riding 
in hot haste; the mustering legions and forming 
squadrons with flying colors; the bonfires of camp 
debris; the popping of discarded cartridges with 
occasional deeper intonation of exploding bomb, alto- 
gether make a scene not soon to be forgotten. 

The time of year was the "roasting ear" season of 
the Virginia cornfields, and great fears were enter- 
tained by the army medical staff as to the probable 
disastrous results to the men of a too free indulgence 
by them in that luxury. As a consequence they were 
strictly . admonished to abstain from the toothsome 
viand, but all to no purpose. We had roasting ears 
boiled, roasting ears roasted, and roasting ears broiled 
in the husk. We had green corn on the cob and off 



50 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

the cob. Green corn for breakfast, green corn for 
dinner, and green corn for supper, with an occasional 
lunch of green corn between times. Yet, wonderful 
to relate, instead of any injury resulting, on the con- 
trary the effect was decidedly beneficial, in that by 
the time we arrived at Yorktown there was scarcely 
a man to respond to sick call. 

The evening of the first day's march the regiment 
camped near a large brick plantation house. The 
owner and family were absent, but the negro servants 
were very much "at home" with the "Yanks" and 
until late in the night were busily employed baking 
"hoe cake" for all who applied. 

The following day the 57th with the 4th Maine 
were detached and served as "flankers" on the left of 
the army, marching by a road that intersected the 
road by which the regiment had advanced from 
Williamsburg toward Richmond at a point near Bar- 
hamsville, thence by the last named road to Williams- 
burg and Yorktown. At Williamsburg there still re- 
mained many evidences of the struggle of the pre- 
ceding May, particularly the marks of shot and shell 
upon the standing timber, many of these marks being- 
high up on the tree trunks and exhibiting a very un- 
steady aim. 

At Yorktown the regiment embarked for Alexan- 
dria and from thence were speedily transferred by rail 
on the Orange and Alexandria road to a point near 
Warrenton Junction. 

At Alexandria many of the men took the oppor- 
tunity to imbibe a liberal quantity of liquid refresh- 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 5 1 

ments, the first chance they had to do so since the 
issuing - of whiskey rations in the swamps in front of 
Richmond. To the credit of the 57th, but very few 
indulged beyond their capacity to carry their load 
steadily, but such could not be said of some of the 
other regiments in the division, notably one of New 
York, in which there were not a sufficient number of 
"sobers" to care for the "drunks." The cars on which 
we were shipped to the front were the ordinary "flats." 
By the time their "drunks" were safely deposited on 
these cars by the "sobers" fully one-half had rolled off 
into the side ditches, and so the process of reloading 
had to be repeated time and again with many inter- 
vening, and sometimes amusing, sparring matches to 
add to the confusion and delay. While these bacchan- 
alian exhibitions were going on General Kearny and 
staff rode along the side of the railway track, doing 
what they could in the way of encouragement to the 
overworked "sobers" in their apparently endless task. 
As the general passed the 57th some member called 
out to a comrade near to the scene of drunken strife 
in progress on the adjoining cars, inquiring if any of 
the 57th were engaged in the fracas then going on. 
The general promptly turned in his saddle and shouted 
back, "No, thank God, there's none of the 57th!" 

It was not the regiment's privilege to ride all the 
way from Alexandria to its destination at the front. 
Disembarking near Catlett Station it advanced by 
easy marches. 

Somewhere on the Virginia Peninsula Captain 
Maxwell, of Company F, had secured the services of 



52 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

an old negro as his cook. At Malvern Hill this old 
fellow had not put sufficient space between himself 
and the enemy for safety, and found himself in rather 
close proximity for comfort to the shells of their bat- 
teries. While at Harrison's Landing it was the de- 
light of the boys to get this old man to describe the 
battle and give his experience under fire. His in- 
imitable imitation of the screaming shot and shell ac- 
companied with grotesque pantomime was amusing in 
the extreme. We little thought, however, the deep 
impression these scenes and experiences had made 
upon his mind until again we came in sound of the 
enemy's guns. As the regiment advanced toward 
Bealeton the cannonading in our front became at times 
quite heavy. The old cook was trudging along by the 
side of the marching column, carrying a camp kettle, 
when suddenly the batteries opened fire. He stopped, 
looked and listened, with fear depicted in every linea- 
ment of his dusky face. "Dis chil' done gone fur 
'nuf dis way!" he exclaimed. Then turning about 
took toward the rear as fast as his legs could carry 
him. It was the last seen of the captain's cook. 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 53 



CHAPTER V. 

BY J. M. MARTIN. 

Second Bull Run Campaign — Battle of Chantilly — Death of 
General Kearny — His Body Escorted to Washington by 
a Detachment of the Fifty-Seventh — Retreat to Alexan- 
dria — Conrad's Ferry — Colonel Campbell Rejoins the 
Regiment. 

Our stay in the neighborhood of Bealeton and 
Warrenton Junction was brief. Lee was moving 
northward, the main body of his army being west of 
the Bull Run mountains, while Jackson with Stewart's 
cavalry was on the east. The 3d corps in which the 
57th served fell back to Centerville by way of Green- 
wich and Manassas Junction. As we passed the 
latter the buildings and many cars were smouldering 
ruins, showing that Jackson's outflankers had recently 
been there, and that the main body of his troops could 
not be far distant. The night of the 28th we biv- 
ouacked at Centerville and the next morning marched 
out the Warrenton turnpike. On our way we met 
quite a number of paroled prisoners who had just 
been sent through the lines by Jackson. They were 
quite jubilant, reporting that desperate fighter com- 
pletely hemmed in at the base of the mountains and 
likely to fall an easy prey to our army. With this 
hopeful intelligence we pressed on with stimulated zeal 
toward the front. Arriving on the battlefield Kearny's 
division was deployed on the extreme right of the 
line, which position it held during the two succeeding 



54 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

days of the battle, most of the division at one time 
or other being hotly engaged. The 57th, however, 
escaped, though frequently under fire. Along the left 
and center the battle raged fiercely. The issue hung 
upon the ability of Pope to crush his antagonist, the 
redoubtable " Stonewall," before assistance could 
come to him from his chief beyond the mountains. 
But alas for our fondest expectations! Longstreet 
pressed his way through the insecurely guarded 
mountain pass, Thoroughfare Gap, and late in the 
afternoon of the 30th, when victory seemed about to 
perch on our banners, threw himself with irresistible 
force against our left. The onset was so fierce and 
unexpected that it did not lie in human power to re- 
sist, and in a few brief moments, all hope vanished, 
rout followed, and an almost fac simile of the dis- 
aster of the preceding summer was the consequence, 
except that our legions were veterans now, the army 
retained its morale and (especially the right wing) 
fell back in good order upon Centerville, the enemy, 
either from being sorely crippled, or satisfied with 
his success, giving little annoyance. The armv in 
this encounter could not be said to have been defeated. 
Fully one-third of its efficient force had not been en- 
gaged. A general impression prevailed in the ranks 
that we either had been outgeneraled or that some 
stupendous blunder had been made. 

Rumors of disobedience of orders by officers high 
in rank filled the air, and mortification and chagrin 
the breasts of all. We were not whipped ; that would 
have been satisfying. The story was that in the game 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 55 

of war our adversary, in playing his winning card, 
had been aided by the petty strifes and jealousies 
among our own leaders. Happily history has done 
much to remove this feeling and as well the clouds 
that overcast the fair name and fame of at least one 
of our corps commanders, whose bravery and ability 
none doubted. But then it was different, and pro- 
voked by defeat, slight evidence was sufficient to call 
down maledictions" loud and bitter. 

During August 31st and September 1st the regi- 
ment camped near Centerville, but in the afternoon of 
the 1 st received marching orders and filed out on the 
road leading to Fairfax Court House. Marching 
leisurely along, all unconscious of the near presence 
of an enemy, we were suddenly startled by the sound 
of skirmish firing to our left. A moment later Gen- 
eral Kearny and staff rode past at a gallop. The 
desultory firing of the skirmishers increased rapidly 
to volleys and soon we were advancing to the front at 
a double quick. Wheeling to the left of the road on 
which we were marching we were deployed in line 
of battle; part of the division immediately advanced 
and soon was hotly engaged. In the midst of the roar 
of battle a fierce electric storm burst upon the con- 
tending forces, and the flashes of lightning and peals 
of thunder mingled with the crash of musketry and 
booming of cannon, while rain descended in torrents. 
While the regiments of the division were being 
advanced General Kearny sat on his horse but a few 
paces from the 57th. Some of his staff suggested 
that the regiment be assigned to the advance column. 



56 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

"No," replied the general, "place the 57th in reserve. 
If these men have to retreat I want them to fall back 
upon men that won't run!" These were the last 
words he ever uttered in our presence. Within a 
brief hour he lay cold in death within the enemy's 
lines, the victim of that spirit within him so often 
manifested on the field of battle and at the post of 
danger, never to send another where he himself 
would not willingly go. 

To the 57th was accorded the honor of receiving 
from the Confederates under a flag of truce the fol- 
lowing morning the remains of their fallen leader, 
the five right companies, A, B, C, D and E, with the 
colors subsequently acting as special escort of the 
body to Washington, D. C. 

The day following the short, but sanguinary 
engagement at Chantilly, the remaining companies of 
the regiment, not detached for the above mentioned 
sad duty, marched to Alexandria and encamped near 
the regiment's old quarters of the preceding winter. 
While in camp an incident occurred that came near 
breaking up the regimental organization. During the 
Peninsula and Bull Run campaigns the regiment had 
become reduced in numbers to scarcely one-fourth of 
its original strength, and as a consequence an order 
was issued directing the consolidation of the regiment 
with the 99th Pennsylvania Volunteers, which was a 
comparatively new organization, had seen but little 
field service and had but recently been assigned to the 
brigade. The news of this order caused the most in- 
tense feeling, the men declaring that "having received 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 57 

from Governor Curtin their colors when they were 
returned to the state capital they would return with 
them." Major Birney was still absent, having ac- 
companied the remains of General Kearny to Newark, 
New Jersey. Chaplain McAdam immediately visited 
Washington, interviewed the Secretary of War, put 
himself in communication with Governor Curtin and 
soon brought to us the good news that the order had 
been countermanded. Chaplain McAdam's success in 
this important undertaking gave him great popularity 
in the regiment, if, indeed, his popularity could be 
increased, for from the first organization of the regi- 
ment the chaplain had a warm place in the esteem 
and confidence of the men, irrespective of rank or 
condition. 

The regiment had not been visited by its pay- 
master since some time before the Seven Days' battle. 
As a consequence few if any were the possessors of a 
"greenback." This alone was aggravating, but when 
our proximity to Alexandria brought us daily visits 
by numerous hucksters of fruit and gingerbread, not 
to mention real and toothsome pie, the aggravation 
was intensified to a degree unbearable. This reached 
the climax when on a certain occasion a wagon load 
of watermelons was deliberately driven into camp and 
displayed on the parade ground. The vender of this 
luxury, however, demanded a price that no sixteen 
dollar soldier of "Uncle Sam" could think of paying. 
The temptation to enjoy the luscious fruit was too 
great. One of the boys, disregarding the admonitions 

of a home-cultured conscience which he still cher- 
5 



58 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

ished, picked up a melon and walked off with it to his 
quarters. The huckster followed to collect pay or to 
recover his property, but alas! his efforts to reclaim 
the lost melon left the remainder unguarded, and he 
returned to his wagon only to find the last one gone 
and his wagon empty. Gone, doubtless, in the way 
of all good melons in an army camp. 

During the Antietam campaign the 3d corps re- 
mained in the defences about Washington, south of 
the Potomac. From Arlington Heights the low 
mutter from the distant battlefield could be heard and 
although no tidings came to us of an engagement all 
felt that a desperate battle was in progress. 

On September 12 we received marching orders for 
Poolsville, Md., and on the 15th pitched our tents 
(dog kennel style) near Conrad's Ferry on the Poto- 
mac, where we did picket duty until McClellan again 
crossed the river and resumed his march on Rich- 
mond. Our sojourn at Conrad's Ferry was very rest- 
ful after the summer of hard campaigning; two inci- 
dents, however, occurred to add a touch of excite- 
ment to our otherwise monotonous camp life.* The 
first was a raid across the river to the ancient town 
of Leesburg, the county seat of Loudon county, Va., 
where we had a glimpse, and only that, of the enemy's 
cavalry pickets and received a thorough wetting going 
and returning while fording the river. The second 
was a bootless attempt to head off that bold raider, 
J. E. B. Stewart, in his hazardous ride around our 

* Companies D and G were disbanded at Conrad's Ferry, Md., Sept. 25, 
1862, and the men assigned to other companies of the regiment. 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 59 

army. We marched and countermarched all day long 
up and down the river between Conrad's Ferry and 
Monocacy creek, but notwithstanding our vigilance 
the wily fox slipped us and gained the Virginia shore 
without so much as giving us a chance shot at him. 

Early in October Colonel Campbell returned and 
resumed command of the regiment, although he still 
carried his arm in a sling. We were indeed glad to 
see his face again, but sorry to bid farewell to Major 
Birney, who had won a warm place in the regimental 
affections. 

One of the sad incidents of camp life occurred just 
before the colonel's return. A member of the regi- 
ment had been found guilty of the theft of a pistol 
from one of the cavalry orderlies at brigade head- 
quarters. His sentence was to stand so many hours 
daily on the head of a barrel on the parade ground 
and to march by the front of the line at dress parade 
under guard to the music of the "Rogue's march.'' 
with the word "thief" in large letters on a placard 
strapped across his back. The punishment, while not 
severe, was indeed humiliating. Punishments for 
such offenses were often severe and always of a char- 
acter to expose to ridicule and invite contempt, while 
those of foraging among farmers, which often bore 
more of the character of theft and robbery than the 
legitimate right of confiscation for justifiable use, 
were winked at. On one occasion Colonel Campbell, 
while walking along the towing path of the canal 
that ran near our camp, espied the recently removed 
integument of a porker. In an apparently towering 



60 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

rage, he returned to camp and announced his dis- 
covery, asserting with not a few expletives, more 
forcible than polite, that "any man who would steal 
a pig and didn't know enough to hide its skin de- 
served to be drummed out of camp ! " 

A neighboring farmer made complaint to General 
Hobart Ward, commading the brigade, that his hogs 
were missing and that some of the 57th were the cul- 
prits. The general promised to institute a thorough 
search for evidence of fresh pork in our camp and 
carried out his promise to the letter. Through 
courtesy (presumably) he sent word to Colonel 
Campbell of this proposed inspection. The colonel 
felt it his duty to acquaint the company commanders 
of the facts; these, in turn, informed the sergeants 
and they, following their superior's example, told the 
rank and file. The general came at the hour ap- 
pointed, and that the farmer might know the sin- 
cerity of his promise, brought him with him. The 
search was thorough, but no evidence of the theft 
could be obtained. Some other command must have 
appropriated the hogs ! Of course the farmer was 
convinced. Perhaps, if pressed, would have apolo- 
gized for his porcine imputation upon our honor. 
Perhaps ! 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 6 1 



CHAPTER VI. 

BY J. M. MARTIN. 

On to Richmond Once More — Foragers Captured — General 
McClellan Superseded by General Burnside — The March 
to the Rappahannock — Battle of Fredericksburg. 

The closing days of October found us again on 
the march, swinging down the Virginia valley with 
the grand Army of the Potomac, fully recovered and 
equipped for another measuring of strength with our 
wily foe, the Army of Northern Virginia. 

On November 12th, while we were encamped near 
Waterloo bridge, six men of Company K, Corporal 
Theodore Barber, Privates William Murray, A. L. 
Marsh, J. W. Hummer, Adam Wert and F. E. Hin- 
man, were captured while returning from a foraging 
expedition. When captured they had several sheep 
they had gobbled. For some days it was rumored that 
they had been taken by Mosby's guerrillas and hung, 
but after a short sojourn in Libby prison, they were 
sent to Camp Parole at Annapolis, Md., were ex- 
changed, and rejoined the regiment in the following 
February. 

No other incident of moment occurred until we 
reached the vicinity of Warrenton, Va. There the 
morale of the army received a shock from which it 
required months for recovery. It was the unexpected 
relieving of Gen. George B. McClellan from com- 
mand, and the assignment of Gen. Ambrose E. Burn- 



62 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

side to that high position. That General McClellan 
was the idol of the Army of the Potomac cannot lie 
gainsaid. In him the mass of the troops had un- 
bounded confidence. He had organized, equipped 
and drilled them. On his shoulders that did not rest 
the blame of their discomfiture on the Peninsula. 
Instead they praised him for his masterly "change of 
base" from the swamps of the Chickahominy to the 
James. He had from the jaws of defeat at Bull Run 
wrested victory from their elated and confident enemy 
at South Mountain and Antietam, and now, when on 
the forward movement again, hopeful of final victory, 
he was unceremoniously discharged, and one substi- 
tuted of whom they knew little, and who with pro- 
testations of unfitness accepted the command ! 

At Warrenton the army encountered the first 
snowfall of the winter, the morning reveille waking 
the sleeping host covered with an extra blanket of 
purest whiteness. Our march to the Rappahannock 
was without further incident of note. On November 
25th we arrived upon the heights overlooking the 
ancient city of Fredericksburg sleeping in the river 
valley, beyond which rose Marye's heights and the 
range of wooded hills, on whose slopes was mar- 
shaled our old foe, interrupting our further advance 
upon the Confederate capital. Here the army pitched 
its winter camp. Many of the quarters were built 
quite substantial and comfortable. The messes of 
five and six, cut and split the soft pine indigenous to 
that region, constructing therewith log cabins roofed 
with their shelter tents. Many of these cabins were 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 63 

fitted up quite tastefully, having open fire places and 
bunks erected aganist the walls which were supplied 
with pillows and matresses of the resinous pine 
needles covered with army blankets, making very 
comfortable beds, at least quite luxurious to men who 
had enjoyed nothing better than the ground, or the 
soft side of a plank, for a year past. But from this 
dream of peace and comfort we were soon to be rudely 
wakened. In the early twilight of the morning of 
December nth, the guards that paced their lonely 
beats about the silent camps were startled by the sud- 
den boom of a signal gun, its deep reverberations up 
and down the river valley giving warning to friend 
and foe that a strife for the possession of yonder 
steeps was soon to begin. For a moment silence fol- 
lowed this signal and then from the hundred brazen 
throats of the batteries that lined the crest of the 
hills on the north side flashed sheets of flame amid 
deafening roar and 1 scream of shot and shell, that 
brought every sleeper to his feet. The deep notes of 
the heavier ordnance, mingled with the rifle crack of 
the lighter parrotts; the whizzing of shot and scream- 
ing shells, the path of the latter marked by burning 
fuse, presented a scene grand and awe-inspiring be- 
yond description. It was war's magnificent prelude 
to the fiercer music of the clash of a hundred thou- 
sand muskets to follow. By daylight, camps were 
broken, knapsacks packed, and marching columns 
were pouring forward toward the river where the 
batteries continued to play and pile their smoke in 
thick banks along the crest of the hills. All day long 



64 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

we sat about our campfires in our dismantled quar- 
ters waiting the order to move, but none came and 
darkness found us replacing our shelters for another 
night's rest in our accustomed berths. During the 
afternoon of the 12th our corps, the 3d, marched to 
the extreme left of the line and bivouacked for the 
night in a piece of woodland overlooking the river. 
The next day, the 13th, we retraced our steps, halt- 
ing just before noon at a point where we had a mag- 
nificent panoramic view of the river, town and field, 
and down into the valley, where could dimly be seen 
through the river mists the long lines of blue with 
flying colors waiting the command to storm the 
wooded heights beyond. Judged by the character of 
our movements it looked as though we were to be 
spectators of the struggle about to open. In the line 
of battle our place properly would be with Hooker's 
grand division, which occupied the center, but instead 
we were on the extreme left in support of Franklin. 
In this, however, we were mistaken. About 12 
o'clock the bugles sounded and the order to fall in 
passed along the line, and without further delay the 
long line of the 3d corps wound down the hill, crossed 
the river on the lower pontoon bridge and from thence 
marched directly out upon the plain to the front line 
of battle. That the hour to strike for the possession 
of yonder wooded slopes, occupied by the veterans of 
Jackson, had come was evident to all. From our 
right came the crash and long roll of musketry, tell- 
ing us that Hooker was crowding the enemy in his 
front and we should not Ions: be idle. Soon Ran- 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 65 

dolph's and other batteries in our front and on our 
flanks began to feel for the enemy in the woods to 
our front. As we stood intently watching the effect 
of the bursting shells a stream of smoke shot out 
from a clump of trees and brush to our left center, 
and an instant later a shell whizzed wickedly over 
our heads. The enemy's cover was now revealed and 
on this piece of woodland the fire of every gun in our 
batteries were concentrated. For a time he replied 
with vigor, sending shot for shot. The voice of 
Colonel Campbell rang out above the din : "Lie 
down." We waited not a second order, but quickly 
and closely embraced our mother earth. Soon explo- 
sion followed explosion in quick succession within 
the enemy's lines. A shot from one of our guns had 
penetrated one of their caissons and now their own 
exploding ammunition was doing its deadly work, 
and silencing their only battery in position to do us 
immediate harm. Now is the time to charge the 
heights ! The Pennsylvania Reserves are chosen for 
the hazardous task. In three linees, with arms at a 
right shoulder shift, they advanced at a quick step. 
What a magnificent spectacle! Not a man falters, 
but shoulder to shoulder they move across the plain 
in perfect alignment. At the railroad in the edge of 
the woods they encounter the enemy, who pour into 
their ranks a withering fire. With a cheer they spring 
forward and press back the foe. Soon they are lost 
to view amid the scrub pine, their location only known 
by the curling smoke from their pieces and their 
cheers as they ascend the hill. Over half way to the 



66 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

summit the second line of the enemy is encountered. 
Again a galling fire is poured into their faces, but 
still they cheer and press on. Down in the valley we 
stand anxiously, but idly watching the now desperate 
and unequal contest our comrades of the Old Key- 
stone are waging. They are brothers, friends and 
neighbors to many, if not all of us. A half mile 
intervenes between them and us. We know we are 
not in supporting distance. Our impatience over- 
comes our discipline to wait the word to advance. 
Shouts are being heard all along the line : "Why are 
not the Reserves being supported?" We know too 
keenly that they must yield to the overpowering odds 
against them unless reinforced at once! 

"Battalion, right face, forward, file left, march!" 
rings out clear from the colonel's lips. The men are 
quick to obey, and we move more rapidly to the front. 
"By company, half wheel ! Forward into line on first 
company !" The movement was executed with alacrity. 
"Forward, guide right." We pressed forward with 
quick step toward the woods from which was now 
emerging the broken lines of the Reserves, not in 
panic, but resolutely disputing, as best they could, 
every step. A drainage ditch from three to four feet 
deep, grown up in many places with a tangle of briers, 
extended along our front and parallel with the rail- 
road at the foot of the hills. Into this we were 
ordered in the hope that by its protection we could 
stay the enemy's countercharge. The Reserves were 
still in our front and to deliver an effective fire was 
impossible. Orders to fall back were given, but in 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 67 

the din of battle were unheard or unheeded, and 
many who attempted the retreat were left dead or 
wounded on the field. The enemy swarmed out of 
the woods in our front without order or alignment, 
giving but little heed to the ditch, springing over the 
heads of its occupants in their mad rush for our bat- 
teries. There was not time for the gunners to debate 
the question of the safety of their comrades in their 
front if they would save their batteries, and possibly 
the day to our cause. They poured volley after vol- 
ley of grape and cannister into the advancing enemy, 
each discharge mowing great swathes in their ranks. 
It was more than human flesh could bear and soon 
they were in full retreat for the cover of the woods, 
and thus ended, so far as the 57th was concerned, 
the battle of Fredericksburg. In this short encounter, 
possibly lasting ten minutes, the losses of the regi- 
ment were fearful, considering the number engaged. 
Out of 316 men in line, 21 were killed, 76 wounded 
and 78 missing, 54 of whom were prisoners, 55.38 
per cent of the whole force engaged ! Among the 
wounded was Colonel Campbell, who fell pierced with 
three balls; Captain Strohecker*, and Surgeon Ken- 
nedy. During the 14th the remnant of the regiment 
acted as provost guard to gather up stragglers until 
evening, when we were again placed in the front line, 
where we remained until the night of the 15th. 
During the 15th a truce was declared for the burial 
of the dead, and removal of the wounded ; the ghastly 



* Captain Strohecker was afterward commissioned lieutenant-colonel, 
but did not rejoin the regiment for active service. He was honorably dis- 
charged on March 12, 1863. 



68 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

sequel of the battle that robs it of its glory and drowns 
the acclaims of the victors in the tears of the widowed 
and sobs of the orphans. During the night of the 
15th our army withdrew to the north side of the 
river, leaving the Confederates the practical victors 
on the fiercely contested field. The 57th, with shat- 
tered ranks, reoccupied its old quarters, the empty 
tents and broken messes being sad reminders of the 
horrors of war, and the uncertainty of the soldier's 
term of life. Thus closed the second year of the 
war, and the first of service of the 57th regiment for 
the preservation of the Union, amid scenes of dis- 
comfiture, defeat and gloom. 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 69 



CHAPTER VII. 

BY E. C. STROUSS. 

Camp Pitcher — The "Mud March" — General Hooker in Com- 
mand of the Army — Resolutions Adopted by the Fifty- 
Seventh — Re-assignment to the First Brigade — Anecdote 
of Colonel Campbell — Drill and Inspection — Adoption of 
Corps Badges — The Chancellorsville Campaign — Jackson 
Routs the Eleventh Corps — A "Flying Dutchman" — In 
a Tight Place — General Hooker Disabled — General Sedg- 
wick's Movements — A New Line Established — Strength 
of the Fifty-Seventh and Its Losses. 

The old camp to which we returned after the bat- 
tle was now, by order of General Birney, called Camp 
Pitcher, in honor of Major William Pitcher, a brave 
and gallant officer of the 4th Maine, who was killed 
in the battle of Fredericksburg. The camp was located 
near Falmouth on the west side of the Richmond & 
Potomac railroad. 

Drill and the regular routine of camp life was 
resumed. The paymaster soon made his appearance, 
and the humiliation of our defeat in the recent battle, 
and our sorrow for comrades lost there, had about 
vanished, when an order from army headquarters 
announced another advance against the enemy. 

The weather for a week or more had been bright 
and clear, the roads frozen and in good order for the 
movement of the artillery and trains, therefore Gen- 
eral Burnside thought the time propitious for an 
assault on the enemy. This time an attempt was to 



70 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

be made to turn the enemy's left, and get in the rear 
of their position at Fredericksburg. 

Accordingly on the 20th of January, 1863, we 
broke camp at daylight and our army was once more 
on the move. This expedition is known to the old 
soldiers of the Army of the Potomac as "Burnside's 
Mud March." 

After a march of ten or fifteen miles up the Rap- 
pahannock we reached the vicinity of Bank's Ford 
about dark, with the intention of crossing there and 
driving the enemy from their works on the south 
side of the river. About midnight a warm wind set 
in from the south, the rain began to fall, and con- 
tinued to fall with more or less violence for the next 
three days. After two days of this kind of weather 
the project of attacking the enemy was abandoned and 
we got ready to go back to our old camps. The return 
march was a great trial for the men. With the rain 
beating pitilessly, the roads and fields soon became a 
vast sea of mud. Heavy details were made from all 
the regiments to build corduroy roads in order to 
bring along our trains and artillery. Finally we 
reached our old camp, where our huts were still stand- 
ing, and these were soon roofed with our shelter tents 
and we were once more tolerably comfortable. 

General Burnside was relieved from the command 
of the Army of the Potomac, and was succeeded by 
Maj. Gen. Joseph Hooker on January 24th. The 
announcement of Hooker's appointment was hailed 
with delight by the officers and men of our (Birney's) 
division, where his valor and ability were well known. 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 7 I 

He was one of the original division commanders of 
our (3d) corps. We looked on him as a man of the 
same stamp as the former commander of our division, 
the lamented Kearny. The divisions of Hooker and 
Kearny had fought side by side on the Peninsula 
and second Bull Run campaigns, where they acquired 
renown and honor. The appointment of Hooker was 
soon marked by an improvement in the commissary 
department and in the drill and discipline of the army. 
Soon after the battle of Fredericksburg certain 
evil-disposed newspapers and persons at the North 
were loud in their assertions that the Army of the 
Potomac was tired of the war, and demoralized, and 
circulated reports derogatory to the character of that 
army. To confute such reports, and to denounce those 
with whom they originated, a meeting of the officers 
and men of the 57th was held on February 26th, at 
which resolutions were adopted denouncing as false 
the calumnious reports circulated concerning the army. 
One of the resolutions declared that the 57th would 
sustain the government in the future as in the past, 
a resolution which was made good in the following 
December by three-fourths of the regiment re-enlist- 
ing for three years. Our regiment was the first to 
adopt resolutions of this nature which were ordered 
to be published in the newspapers in the counties in 
which the regiment was raised. Our example was 
followed by many of the regiments of the army. 

Camp Pitcher, with its many pleasant and some 
unpleasant associations, was abandoned on March 4th, 



72 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

when we moved about four miles and laid out a new 
camp about a mile from the Potomac creek bridge. 

On the same day our regiment was reassigned 
to the First Brigade, commanded by Colonel Collis, 
who was succeeded a few days afterward by Gen. 
Charles K. Graham. The brigade consisted of the 
following named Pennsylvania regiments : 57th, Col- 
onel Sides; 63d, Colonel Kirkwood; 68th, Colonel 
Tippen; 105th, Colonel McKnight; 114th, Colonel 
Collis; and 141st, Colonel Madill. Lieut-Colonel 
Sides, formerly captain of Company A, of the 57th, 
returned to the regiment on the field at Fredericks- 
burg, and took command after Colonel Campbell was 
wounded. The latter had been promoted brigadier 
general, and when able for duty was assigned to the 
Army of the Northwest, where the Indians of Min- 
nesota and Dakota were on the warpath and com- 
mitting great depredations. Campbell had wished to 
be assigned to a command in the Army of the Poto- 
mac, and did not like to be sent West. About this 
time a friend of writer, J. T. Chase, of Titusville, 
Pa., met Campbell in Harrisburg, and reported him 
as saying: "The rebels tried their damnedest to kill 
me at Fair Oaks and Fredericksburg, and now I'm 
to be sent out West to be scalped by the Indians." 
The 57th were much attached to Campbell and noth- 
ing would have pleased them more than to serve in 
a brigade commanded by him. 

As spring advanced we were kept busy with camp 
duties. Among these were the frequent inspections, 
by companies, regiment, or brigade. Guard mount- 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 73 

ing was by brigade, with great ceremony, which was 
always witnessed by many officers and men who were 
not on duty. 

It was General Hooker who introduced the system 
of corps badges into the army. The badge of each 
corps was of a different design and were of different 
color in the several divisions of a corps, being red for 
the first division, white for the second, and blue for 
the third. The designs of the different corps badges 
were: ist corps, a sphere; 2d, a trefoil; 3d, a dia- 
mond; 5th, a Maltese cross; 6th, a Greek cross; nth, 
a crescent; and 12th, a star. The badge was made of 
cloth and was sewed on the top of the cap. By this 
arrangement, one could tell at a glance to what corps 
and division a man belonged, and it was of much 
importance in preventing straggling on the march, or 
skulking in battle. The badge system was eventually 
adopted by all other armies in the field. The 57th 
belonged to the first division of the 3d corps, wore a 
red diamond, and are proud to wear it today at all 
old soldiers' gatherings. 

Toward the close of the month of April it became 
evident that another movement against the enemy 
would soon be made. General Hooker's plan was to 
send a large force up the river, to cross over and turn 
the rebel left, at the same time sending a force to a 
point below Fredericksburg to make a feint of cross- 
ing there. About eight thousand cavalry under Gen- 
eral Stoneman were to cross the upper Rappahan- 
nock, gain the enemy's rear and destroy his railroad 
communications and depots of supplies. 

6 



74 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

On April 27th the nth and 12th corps crossed 
the Rappahannock at Kelly's ford and moved to the 
Rapidan where, with little resistance from the enemy, 
they crossed the river at Germania ford. The 5th 
corps moved in the same direction, but crossed the 
Rapidan lower down at Ely's ford. The three corps 
then marched towards Chancellorsville, where they 
arrived on the afternoon of the 30th. 

About 4 p. m. of the 28th the 3d corps broke camp 
and moved to near Franklin's crossing, the place we 
had crossed on the 13th of December. In the same 
vicinity were the 1st and 6th corps. The 2d corps was 
in its camp opposite Fredericksburg. Our position 
here was menacing, in order to distract the enemy's 
attention from the flanking movement of the 5th, nth 
and T2th corps, in which it was successful. 

On the 29th it rained most all day, and nothing 
was done on our part of the line. On the morning of 
the 30th the rain had ceased when the 2d corps started 
up the river, followed by the 3d corps about noon. 
The march was skillfully masked to hide our move- 
ments from the enemy. We marched that afternoon 
to Hartwood church, where our brigade camped for 
the night, and next morning took a road to the left 
and crossed the Rappahannock about noon at the 
United States ford, which is located a few miles below 
the confluence of the Rappahannock and Rapidan. 

After a short halt for dinner we resumed our 
march and a few hours later we reached the place now 
known by the historic name of "Chancellorsville." 
There is, however, no village there. Only a large 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 75 

brick house built for a hotel on account of the min- 
eral springs in the vicinity which were supposed to 
contain valuable medicinal properties. The house was 
used by General Hooker as his headquarters and on 
May 3d it was set on fire by the enemy's shells and 
burned to the ground. We halted in a field near the 
brick house for an hour or so, and then, accompanied 
by a battery, our brigade moved west on the plank 
road until we reached Dowdell's tavern, about two 
miles distant. This was the headquarters of General 
Howard, who with the I ith corps was in position on 
the extreme right of our army. Part of his line faced 
toward the south, and a part to the west toward the 
Wilderness church. Chancellorsville is on the verge 
of the Wilderness, where the great battles of the fol- 
lowing year were fought. 

It appears that the reason our brigade was sent to 
Dowdell's tavern, far from the rest of the division, 
was because General Birney had received an order to 
send a brigade to General Howard to strengthen his 
line. Howard deemed himself strong enough to hold 
his line, so he returned our brigade with compliments 
to General Birney. 

Howard's line, as far as we could see, was not in 
the position that we generally put ourselves, when in 
the face of the enemy. His men on the right of the 
plank road were on open ground with pickets but a 
short distance in front, and with arms stacked and 
accoutrements hanging on the guns. The men were 
lounging about, some cooking, and others playing 
cards. From all reports they were in similar shape 



j6 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

the next evening when they were routed by Jackson's 
onset. 

When we got back to the division we found it 
massed in a large field south of the plank road and a 
few rods west of Hooker's headquarters. A section 
of rebel artillery opened on us here, but their aim 
was bad and they did but little damage. A party of 
sharpshooters was sent against them and caused them 
to withdraw their guns. 

We remained in this field until about 5 o'clock next 
morning, when the division moved out the plank road 
toward the west, when after we had gone about a 
mile we turned to the left and marched for several 
hundred rods through a dense wood of small pines, on 
the farther edge of which was a slight line of works 
which had been built by troops which we relieved. 
These works we strengthened and in a short time we 
had constructed a formidable line of breastworks. 
We faced southward, the country in our front was 
open, and we had a good view of the surrounding 
territory. 

About noon we could see far in the distance, a rebel 
wagon train and troops moving, and as at the point 
where we discovered them they were going south, the 
general opinion was that they were retreating towards 
Gordonsville. Clark's battery of rifled guns, attached 
to our division, soon got into position and opened on 
the rebel column, which, it was plain to see, caused 
considerable commotion among them. They hurried 
past the point as rapidly as possible, and were soon 
lost to view. 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 77 

A detachment of Berdan's sharpshooters and the 
20th Indiana were sent out as skirmishers, and soon 
reached Welford's furnace, where they captured sev- 
eral hundred men of the 23d Georgia and sent them to 
the rear. The pioneers were sent out to build bridges 
across a small creek in our front and when these were 
completed our division moved forward toward the 
point where we had seen the enemy. Whipple's 3d 
division of our corps moved forward at the same time 
on our left and Barlow's brigade of the nth corps 
moved with us on our right. Marching up into the 
woods, considerable time was taken up in forming 
into line of battle, and it was near sundown before 
it was accomplished. The position of the 57th was 
along a rail fence on the brow of a hill overlooking 
the little valley in which stood the old furnace. 

Just as we were about to advance a furious can- 
nonade was heard far in our rear in the direction of 
the plank road. This, as it proved, was caused by 
Jackson's assault on the nth corps, where inadequate 
preparations were made for resisting such an onset, 
and the whole corps was soon streaming to the rear. 

At dark we received orders to fall in as quietly as 
possible, when we were marched back by way we had 
come and halted in the little field in front of the breast- 
works we had left a few hours before. When the 
rout of the nth corps began Berry's (Hooker's old) 
division of our corps, which was on the plank road, 
was ordered up to check the enemy. 

In this division was the 37th New York, a two- 
year regiment, one of whose members, Jack Coleman, 



78 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

afterwards joined Company K, of the 57th. He 
relates that at Chancellorsville one of the nth corps 
artillerymen was going to the rear on the run, and 
carrying on his shoulder the sponge staff, used to 
sponge the gun and which is generally called the 
"swab" by battery men. When asked by some of the 
boys of the 37th New York what he was running for, 
he halted long enough to reply, "Ach, mein Chesus, 
Schneider's battery ish all gone but der schwap." He 
was evidently bound to hang on to some of Uncle 
Sam's property at any rate. 

While we were still in position near the old breast- 
works, Ward's brigade of our division made a bayo- 
net charge by moonlight, with uncapped guns, into 
the woods in our front and drove the enemy back far 
enough to enable us to get out in the morning. 

Just at the dawn of day on May 3d, the rebel 
general, J. E. B. Stewart, who was commanding Jack- 
son's corps, was attempting to straighten his line in 
the woods on his right. The rebels at that point be- 
came aware that a large body of "yanks" were in the 
field in their front. This was our brigade, which was 
getting ready to move to the right to get on ground 
which was more advantageous to resist an attack. 
Where we were, the left flank of the different regi- 
ments were presented to the enemy, so we faced to 
the right and commenced to move briskly when the 
rebel skirmishers opened fire on us, but we continued 
on the double quick until we reached the large field 
south of the Chancellor house, where we deployed and 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 79 

formed line of battle awaiting the onset of the enemy, 
and we did not have long to wait, either. 

We entered a wood in our front, with the 63d 
Pennsylvania on the right of our regiment and the 
68th on our left. There our men did some very hard 
fighting. At one time we made a charge and drove the 
enemy from a log breastwork, but the woods seemed 
to swarm with the enemy; they were reenforced and 
drove us back in turn. We then went in further to 
the right and were engaged again. 

The 3d corps had been fighting since 5 o'clock 
in the morning. It was now near 10, when victory 
was almost in our grasp, as the enemy had been pun- 
ished severely, and a fresh brigade would have decided 
the battle in our favor. General Sickles had repeatedly 
called for reenforcements, which could have been 
spared from the large body of troops which were un- 
employed in the rear, but General Couch, who was in 
temporary command of the army, refused to take the 
responsibility of weakening any other part of the line 
to reenforce Sickles. General Hooker, while standing 
near a large pillar of the Chancellor house which was 
hit by a shell, was struck by some of the flying frag- 
ments. He was disabled for several hours, during 
which time the command devolved on General Couch, 
who was the senior general on the field. 

About 2 o'clock our army took up a new line a 
short distance in the rear, which covered the roads 
leading to Ely's and United States fords. The open 
ground around the Chancellor house was abandoned 
to the enemy, who by this time were nearly exhausted. 



80 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

and much reduced by the severe losses they had met 
with. 

While the fighting was going on at Chancellors- 
ville, General Sedgwick had crossed at Fredericks- 
burg and drove the enemy from the heights in the rear 
of the town and then advanced up the river to assist 
Hooker. But several miles out of Fredericksburg the 
rebels encountered him at Salem church, where after 
severe fighting Sedgwick's corps (the 6th) was re- 
pulsed and recrossed the river at Bank's ford. 

Our new line at Chancellorsville was one of great 
strength, and could almost be defended by the artil- 
lery alone, which in large batteries had been posted 
at advantageous points commanding the approaches 
of the enemy. They made several attempts against 
our line during the 4th, but were always repulsed by 
the artillery, which was ably handled. In the evening 
that part of the line held by our brigade was heavily 
shelled by the enemy, but most of their shells passed 
over us and burst in the woods in our rear. 

On the 5th it began to rain and rained all night, 
raising the Rappahannock so high that our pontoon 
bridges were in danger of being swept away. One 
of them had to be taken up to splice out the other 
two, and it was only by the unremitting labor of the 
engineer corps that the bridges were held in position. 

On the morning of the 6th, after dayilght, we 
commenced our retreat unmolested by the enemy, and 
recrossed the river at United States ford, and, after 
plodding all day through the mud and rain, we re- 
gained our old camps about 6 o'clock in the evening. 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 8 1 

The losses of the two armies were nearly equal, 
though the rebel loss in killed was greater than ours. 
The Union loss was 1,612 killed, 9,591 wounded. The 
rebel loss was 1,665 killed and 9,081 wounded. A 
severe loss to the enemy was the mortal wounding of 
Stonewall Jackson. The losses in the 3d corps were 
very heavy, among them two general officers, Gen- 
erals Berry and Whipple, killed. 

According to the monthly return of the 57th, dated 
April 30, 1863, we find that the strength of the regi- 
ment present for duty was 24 officers and 232 enlisted 
men ; total, 256. Our loss at the battle of Chancel- 
lorsville was 2 officers and 8 men killed ; 2 officers and 
41 men wounded; 2 officers and 17 men captured. 
The officers killed were Capt. Edson J. Rice and Lieut. 
Joseph Brady, Chaplain McAdam and Assistant Sur- 
geon Leet were captured, but being noncombatants 
they were exchanged a few weeks afterward. 

The battle of Chancellorsville ought to have ended 
in a victory for us, and no doubt would have done 
so, had General Howard taken proper precautions to 
prevent surprise on his part of the line. But it seems 
the fates were against us. The cavalry expedition 
under General Stoneman, of which much was ex- 
pected, did but slight damage to the enemy's rail- 
roads, and returned to our lines having accomplished 
little or nothing. 



82 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 



CHAPTER VIII. 

BY E. C. STROUSS. 

Back Again in Our Old Camp — Cavalry Battle at Brandy 
Station — The March to Gettysburg — Hooker's Request 
for Troops at Harper's Ferry — Asks to be Relieved from 
the Command of the Army — We Arrive at Gettysburg — 
Battle of July 2d— Strength of the Fifty-Seventh— Its 
Losses — General Graham Wounded and Captured — 
Wounding of General Sickles — Battle of July 3d — July 
4th — The Confederates Retreat — General Sickles Asks 
for a Court of Inquiry — President Lincoln to Sickles — 
A Visit to the Battlefield Twenty-five Years Later. 

Although some of our men had destroyed their 
huts, when we started on the recent campaign, there 
were on account of our losses, enough still standing 
to shelter what was left of the regiment. It was sad 
to look around at the vacant huts, and to realize that 
their former occupants would never rejoin us. The 
141st Pennsylvania, whose camp adjoined ours, had 
met with severe losses in the late battle and the large 
number of unoccupied huts in their camp had a de- 
pressing effect on the spectator. 

After a few days' rest the same old routine of 
drill, inspection, guard and picket duty was resumed, 
relieved occasionally by a division or corps review. 
The paymaster arrived on May nth and paid the 
regiment, each man receiving four months' pay, 
which to the private soldier meant $52.00. 

About the last week in May we abandoned our old 
camp for a new location near Belle Plain landing. 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 83 

which was a depot of supplies on the Potomac. The 
camp was soon laid out, and the weather having 
become quite warm we needed only our little shelter 
tents to protect us from the sun or rain. The camp 
of the regiment was near a road leading to the land- 
ing, which was constantly occupied by teams going 
to, or coming from there, which raised great clouds 
of dust, to our great annoyance. 

Our cavalry had quite a battle with the enemy at 
Brandy Station, which ended favorably for us, and 
also made it obvious that the rebels were moving 
northward, thus taking the initiative in what became 
known as the "Gettysburg Campaign." 

On June nth, about noon, we were ordered to 
strike tents, and were soon on the march, over the 
hills, and through the ravines of Stafford county, 
which were no longer to be used by us as camping 
grounds. The day was very warm and there was 
considerable straggling, but the men all got up by 
night, when we camped at Hartwood church. On the 
1 2th we marched to near Bealeton station, on the old 
Orange & Alexandria railroad, where we halted for 
the night, and next day marched for a few miles to- 
ward Rappanhannock station. On the 14th we 
started in the evening and marched northward to Cat- 
lett station, where we arrived about midnight. On 
the 15th we moved to Manassas Junction. This was 
one of the hottest days of the season, and some forty 
men of our division were prostrated by sunstroke. 
On the 1 6th, which was another hot and dusty day. 
we marched to Bull Run and encamped at Mitchell's 



84 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

ford. On the 17th we continued our march to Center- 
ville, where we remained until the evening of the 
19th, when we started for Gum Springs. After wc 
had gone about two miles a violent storm of rain set 
in. This was one of the worst night marches we ever 
made. The night was dark as pitch, only an occa- 
sional flash of lightning to show us the way. When 
we halted for the night we were drenched to the skin 
and as our matches were all damp we had hard work 
to start our campfires. When we had got our fires 
started we found that the regiment must move a mile 
further on to go on picket. This was very discom- 
forting, but it had to be done, for such is the life of 
a soldier. 

In the meantime the enemy had been moving- 
northward on the west side of the Blue Ridge moun- 
tains. A Union force under General Milroy of about 
seven thousand men was attacked by the rebel General 
Ewell, who captured many of them and drove the 
rest across the Potomac. This occurred on the 13th 
and 14th of June. 

On June 25th, the 57th with the rest of the 3d 
corps moved from Gum Springs and crossed the Poto- 
mac at Edwards ferry into Maryland and moved up 
the river to the mouth of the Monocacy river. 

The corps of Hill and Longstreet of Lee's army 
crossed the Potomac at Williamsport and Sheppards- 
town and moved toward Pennsylvania. They were 
preceded for several days by Ewell, who was n6w in 
that state and threatening Harrisburg. 

On June 26th we left our camp at the mouth of 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 85 

the Monocacy and moved to Point of Rocks, on the 
Baltimore & Ohio railroad. The next day we marched 
by way of Jefferson to Middletown, Md., and on the 
28th to Woodsborough. There we learned that Gen- 
eral Hooker had been relieved from command of the 
army and had been succeeded by Gen. George G. 
Meade. Hooker had asked Halleck, the general-in- 
chief of the army, for the forces at Harpers Ferry 
and Baltimore which were refused him, whereupon he 
asked to be relieved from command. A few days 
later Meade asked for the same troops, some thirteen 
thousand in number, and his request was complied 
with. The change of commanders on the eve of bat- 
tle was a questionable thing, but as we were success- 
ful in the coming conflict, not much was said about it. 

Hooker's army had been depleted after Chancel- 
lorsville, by the muster out of about thirty thousand 
two years or nine months men. He was perfectly 
right in asking for the troops at Harpers Ferry, which 
were doing no good there, but on account of an ill 
feeling existing between Halleck and Hooker they 
were refused him, although they were given to Meade. 
To a great many old soldiers it was always a puzzle 
what Halleck was kept at Washington for anyway. 

It now became evident to the men of the 57th that 
we would soon be called to fight a battle on the soil 
of our native state, but where the battle ground would 
be was as yet a matter of conjecture. 

On June 29th we marched from Woodborough to 
Taneytown and encamped in a fine grove near the 
town. Many of the citizens of the town, including- 



86 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

a goodly lot of ladies visited our camp in the even- 
ing and watched with interest the men putting up their 
tents, and cooking their coffee. The next day we 
marched but a few miles, and encamped at Bridge- 
port, a small hamlet about half way between Taney- 
town and Emmitsburg, Md. 

At 2 o'clock p. m. of July ist we were hurriedly 
ordered to "fall in," when we took the Emmitsburg 
pike and rapidly marched toward Gettysburg, twelve 
miles distant. The day was very warm and sultry, 
but after a fatiguing march we arrived near the town 
about 8 p. m., and bivouacked for the night on the 
Trostle farm, which is located about two miles south 
of Gettysburg. There had been severe fighting going 
on north and west of the town from io a. m. until 
dark. The ist and nth corps had been engaged with 
overpowering numbers of the enemy, and although 
they fought valorously, and met with heavy losses, 
they were obliged to fall back through the town and 
take up a stronger position on Cemetery hill. General 
Reynolds, who commanded the Union forces engaged, 
was killed early in the fight. His loss was deeply 
regretted, as he was one of the best generals in our 
army. During the night all the other corps of our 
army came up with the exception of the 6th corps, 
which havinp- the greatest distance to march did not 
arrive until 2 p. m. of the 2d. The men of the 57th 
were up by daylight on the 2d and preparing their 
breakfast and otherwise getting ready for the conflict 
which all knew would open sooner or later during the 
day. 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 87 

Unlike the battlefields of Virginia where we usual- 
ly fought in the woods or thickets, we were now on a 
field where we had an unobstructed view, and could 
see something of the movements of other troops, 
besides our own regiment or brigade. 

At this time the 3d corps consisted of two divisions 
commanded by Generals Birney and Humphreys. The 
right of the latter division joined the left of Han- 
cock's 2d corps on the southern slope of Cemetery 
hill. Birney to the left was to extend his line on the 
same prolongation to the base of Little Roundtop. 
But this line was commanded by the high ground 
ground along the Emmitsburg road and at the peach 
orchard. General Sickles, after having repeatedly in- 
formed General Meade that the line was a weak one, 
assumed the responsibility of changing it. He there- 
fore posted Birney's division as follows : Graham's 
brigade on the right, its right resting a few rods north 
of the Sherfy house on the Emmitsburg road. At 
the peach orchard, which is a part of the Sherfy farm, 
an angle was formed in our brigade line, part of it 
facing west, and part to the south. On Graham's 
left was De Trobriand's brigade which in part occu- 
pied the wheatfield. Ward's brigade held the left of 
the division passing through the rocky ground called 
Devil's Den, with his left resting at the western base 
of Little Roundtop. 

A great part of the day was spent by the ma- 
neuvering of both armies. General Meade's opinion 
was that Lee would attack his right, while that gen- 
eral was moving his troops behind Seminary ridge 



88 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

for the purpose of attacking Meade's left. The key 
point on this part of the line was Little Roundtop, 
but strange to tell, it was not occupied by our troops 
until after the battle began and then just in the nick 
of time. A few minutes later the enemy would have 
gained the crest and Gettysburg would have been lost. 
The occupation of the hill is due to the energy of 
General Warren, chief of engineers, who succeeded in 
getting troops there just as the enemy was beginning 
to ascend the western base of the hill. 

In the meantime our regiment was lying in a field 
a few rods in the rear of the Sherfy house, which 
stood on the opposite side of the road. The 105th 
Pennsylvania was on our right, and the 114th on our 
left. For two hours we lay here under the hottest 
fire of artillery we had as yet been subjected to. The 
enemy had some thirty pieces of artillery planted on 
the ridge to the south and west of us, hurling their 
missiles toward us as fast as they could work their 
guns. Fortunately most of them were aimed too high 
to do us injury, but to stay there so long under that 
howling, shrieking storm of shot and shell, was more 
trying to the nerves than to be engaged in close action 
with the enemy. 

Finally this long cannonade ceased and the enemy 
began to advance his infantry to attack our part of 
the line. The 57th and the 114th were ordered across 
the road, where we beheld the enemy, which proved 
to be Barksdale's Mississippi brigade, advancing 
through the fields toward us. Our regiment at once 
took advantage of the cover that the house, outbuild- 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 89 

ings and trees afforded and opened fire on the enemy, 
who were within easy range, and did not reply to our 
fire until they reached a rail fence about a hundred 
yards in our front. There were then no rebels to the 
right of those engaged with us, and for a while we 
had the best of the fight owing to our sheltered posi- 
tion. The men of the 57th who were in the house 
kept up a steady fire from the west windows of the 
house. The writer had posted himself by a large 
cherry tree against which some fenceposts were lean- 
ing, on the north side of the house. Before the fight 
closed this cherry tree was struck with a twelve pound 
solid shot from one of our guns. When the monu- 
ment of the regiment was dedicated in July, twenty- 
five years later, the tree with the cannon ball em- 
bedded in it was still standing. 

Although the angle of the peach orchard was long 
and bravely defended by our troops there, they were 
at last compelled to yield ground, and by so doing 
the regiments along the Emmittsburg road were en- 
filaded and obliged to fall back also. When we found 
the enemy coming up the road in our rear, Captain 
Nelson, who was in command of the regiment, tried 
to notify those in the house, and order them to fall 
back, but amid the noise and confusion it was impos- 
sible to make then understand the situation, and they 
kept on firing from the windows after the rest of the 
men fell back, and they were summoned to surrender 
by the rebels who came up the stairs in their rear. 

Those of us who got out of this tight place were 

soon after formed with the rest of our division, on a 

7 



90 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

ridge in the rear of the position we had occupied in 
the morning. Reenforcements from the 5th, 2d and 
1 2th corps were sent in to reestablish the line which 
our division had held, but they were unable to do so 
when darkness put an end to the conflict. 

The 57th entered the battle with 18 officers and 
187 enlisted men. Our losses were 2 officers and 9 
men killed, 9 officers and 37 men wounded, and 4 
officers and 55 men captured, a total of 116, over half 
of the number carried into action. Lieutenant Henry 
Mitchell, of Company E, and Lieutenant John F. Cox, 
of Company I, were killed, and Colonel Sides was 
among the officers wounded. Of the 55 enlisted men 
captured only 1 1 returned to the regiment. The re- 
maining 44 died in prison at Belle Isle, or at Ander- 
sonville. Major Neeper was captured, as were also 
Lieutenants Hines, Burns and Crossley. 

General Graham was wounded and taken prisoner 
in the peach orchard. General Sickles lost a leg near 
the Trostle house about 6 p. m. General Birney then 
assumed command of the corps. Col. A. H. Tippon, 
of the 68th Pennsylvania, succeeded General Graham 
in command of the brigade. 

Early in the morning of the 3d our division was 
ordered to the front, which was now considerably in 
rear of the position we occupied the day before. The 
enemy occupied the Emmitsburg road and the peach 
orchard, and fields to the south. On the left near 
the Roundtops their line was farther back than the 
position they gained the evening before. From the 
position of our regiment we could plainly see the 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 91 

Sherfy house, which was about three-fourths of a mile 
to our front and left. 

When General Geary, with part of his division, on 
the 26. left his position on the right of the Union line 
at Culp's hill to reenforce the 3d corps, he left behind 
him to hold his works the brigade of General Greene. 
The enemy in the evening in strong force attacked 
this position and succeeded in capturing a part of the 
line of works, but they were recaptured by General 
Geary early next morning. 

In front of the 57th everything was quiet and the 
men were enjoying a much needed rest under the trees 
in the little grove in which they were stationed. 
Rations were distributed and we also received a good 
ration of commissary whiskey, which at that time 
was duly appreciated. It was quiet during the fore- 
noon and many of our men, pillowed on their knap- 
sacks, were asleep when the tremendous artillery fire 
began which was the prelude to the charge of Pick- 
ett's division on Hancock's position on Cemetery hill. 
Their fire was soon responded to by our artillery and 
for about two hours the earth fairly shook with the 
thunder of these guns and the bursting of shells. All 
this noise was going on about a mile to the right of 
us and as we were "not in it" we were anxiously 
wondering what the result would be. 

After this cannonading had been going on for 
some time we were ordered to fall in quickly. About 
eighty of the 57th were left to respond to the call. 
These were soon in line and with the rest of the bri- 
gade we moved rapidly to the right in the direction of 



92 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

the firing. Moving in double quick for about a mile 
we were halted and took a position a few rods in 
rear of several batteries which were heavily engaged. 
They had just repulsed a charge of Wilcox's rebel 
brigade, which was supporting Pickett on his right, 
and whose retreat was being covered by the rebel artil- 
lery. We did not become engaged while here, but 
were exposed to the enemy's fire, which, however, did 
us no harm. After the firing ceased and the smoke 
had lifted, we learned of the repulse of Pickett's men 
and that our army had for once gained an important 
victory. 

That night the regiment was sent on picket duty 
about half a mile to our front on ground that had been 
fought over on the afternoon of the 2d, and as the 
bodies of dead men and horses strewed the ground, 
the hot sun had decomposed them, causing an odor 
that was extremely disagreeable. 

At daylight we moved back and rejoined the bri- 
gade. It was the 4th of July, the eighty-seventh anni- 
versary of American Independence, and here we were 
on a field strewn with the bodies of our comrades, who 
had died for the great principles which our fathers 
had maintained in 1776. With the exception of a 
little picket firing there was no fighting on the 4th, 
and that night the enemy began their retreat back to 
Virginia. 

General Sickles has been blamed in some quarters 
for taking the advanced position he did at Gettysburg 
on July 2d, but he is also sustained by many promi- 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 93 

nent military men, among them Gen. U. S. Grant, 
who visited the battlefield after the war. 

The enemy having retreated, the 6th corps and 
cavalry were sent in pursuit. Our corps did not leave 
until the 7th. On the afternoon of the 6th the writer 
took a stroll out to the Sherfy house to look at the 
ground there. At the house the brick walls on the 
south and west sides were scarred by the enemy's 
bullets and the roof had a number of holes made by 
fragments of shell. The bursting of shells had set 
fire to the large barn and destroyed it, burning at the 
same time a number of wounded soldiers who had 
sought refuge in it. The dead had all been buried, 
but where our batteries had stood were heaps of dead 
horses. It was then I discovered the cannon ball in 
the cherry tree, mentioned above, by which I had been 
standing during the fight on the 2d. The ball was 
from our own guns, and no doubt struck the tree dur- 
ing the fighting of July 3d, or on the afternoon of 
the 2d after our men had abandoned the house. 

While visiting the battlefields in 1888 Mrs. Sherfy 
informed me that nothing worth mentioning had been 
taken from the house or destroyed. An eight-day 
clock, which had been wound up before the family left 
the house when a battle was imminent, was still tick- 
ing away when they returned after the fight was over. 
She also stated that a limber chest containing a lot 
of ammunition was found in the field opposite the 
house. The men of the family were afraid to handle 
the ammunition, so to dispose of it, they dug a hole 
beside the chest, and tumbled it in, contents and all. 



94 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

and covered it up, and it had not been disturbed since. 
The chest no doubt belonged to Randolph's battery, 
as a section of it was in action at the point indicated 
by Mrs. Sherfy. 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 95 



CHAPTER IX. 

BY E. C. STROUSS. 

We Leave Gettysburg — Rebel Spy Hung — French's Division 
Joins the 3d Corps — Enemy's Position at Falling 
Waters — He Escapes Across the Potomac — In Old Vir- 
ginia Again — Manassas Gap — Camp at Sulphur Springs — 
Movement to Culpepper — Eleventh and Twelfth Corps 
Sent West — Lee's Efforts to Gain Our Rear — Skirmish 
at Auburn Creek — Warren's Fight at Bristow Station — 
Deserter Shot — Retreat of the Enemy — Kelly's Ford — 
Mine Run Campaign — The Regiment Re-enlists — The 
"Veteran Furlough" — Recruiting — Presented with a New 
Flag by Governor Curtin — Back to the Front — General 
Grant Commands the Army — Reorganization — The Wil- 
derness Campaign — Three Days of Hard Fighting — Loss 
in Fifty-lSeventh. 

On the morning of July 7th we left Gettysburg 
and moved southward, through Emmitsburg and 
halted for the night at Mechanicstown, Md. On the 
8th we passed Frederick City, and encamped two miles 
beyond the town. While passing the town we could 
see away off to our right near the town a gallows 
standing, and a large crowd gathered about it. A 
rebel spy had been caught and hung. Some of our 
men who saw this spy, recognized in him the same 
man who sold and sang songs throughout our camp 
the summer before when we lay in front of Rich- 
mond. He was a fine singer and sold lots of his 
songs, but he met the fate of a spy at last. On the 
9th we moved again and at night we reached South 
Mountain. 



96 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

About this time the division of Gen. W. H. French 
was assigned to our corps and became the 3d division. 
General French being the senior general, now took 
command of the corps. Colonel Tippon had been 
relieved from the command of the brigade, which was 
now commanded by Colonel Madill, of the 141st 
Pennsylvania. 

On July 10th we marched from South Mountain 
to a point about five miles beyond Keedysville, Md. 
On the 1 2th we were drawn up in line of battle near 
Falling Waters, and expected to attack the enemy, 
who had thrown up a strong line of works to cover 
their crossing of the Potomac. The attack, however, 
was delayed too long, and when we advanced on the 
14th we found their works deserted and the enemy 
safely across the river. Previous to this many of 
their wagons had been captured and many prisoners 
taken by our cavalry. 

It was humiliating to think that the enemy escaped 
so easily. With the swollen Potomac in their front, 
their pontoon bridge destroyed, and our victorious 
army in their rear, they ought to have been compelled 
to surrender. But Appomattox was still a long way 
off and many brave boys would fall before the end 
came. The news that General Grant had taken Vicks- 
burg, and caused the surrender of Pemberton's army, 
was some consolation in our disappointment over 
Lee's escape. 

On the 15th we passed over the old Antietam 
battlefield, and halted for the night about two miles 
beyond Sharpsburg. On the 16th we passed through 












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PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 97 

Brownsville and Rohrersville and encamped near 
Harper's Ferry. The next day about dark we crossed 
the Potomac at Harper's Ferry and were once more 
on the soil of Virginia. 

We resumed our march on the 18th and 19th, 
and on the 20th we reached Upperville. On the 23d 
we were near Manassas Gap, where it was expected 
we would strike the enemy's column, which was mov- 
ing up the Shenandoah valley. We moved to the top 
of a high hill, where we had a fine view of Front 
Royal and the surrounding country. We also wit- 
nessed a fight in a field in the valley to our right, of a 
force of the enemy and Sickles' old Excelsior brigade. 
This engagement, in which we were but slightly en- 
gaged, is known as the skirmish of " Wapping 
Heights." The enemy retreated during the night and 
next day we moved some miles beyond Piedmont on 
the Manassas Gap railroad. The greater part of our 
march was over the torn up railroad track, and as the 
day was excessively hot we were a tired lot of men 
when we encamped that night. 

On the 25th we marched to within six miles of 
Warrenton, in Fauquier county, Va. The next day 
we moved four miles beyond the town and encamped 
at Fauqueir Sulphur Springs. Here we remained for 
about six weeks, during which time Colonel Sides and 
some of the officers and men who had been wounded 
at Chancellorsville and Gettysburg returned for duty. 
Here we had a fine camp, with good facilities for bath- 
ing in Hedgeman's river, a branch of the Rappahan- 
nock. The large brick hotel at the springs had been 



98 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

destroyed by fire the year before during Pope's cam- 
paign. Back of the hotel site was a fine park which 
was surrounded on three sides by cottages which had 
been used by summer sojourners at this place. Near 
the center of the park stood a pavilion, under which 
was the noted spring, the water of which was very 
cold and strongly impregnated with sulphur. We 
drank freely of this water and were advised to do so 
by the medical officers of the division. If we had 
been afflicted with the itch, the water would no doubt 
have been an effective remedy, but the only itch that 
troubled us was caused by a small insect known 
among scientists as the pediculus vcstimenti and the 
sulphur water was not effective in driving the pests 
away. 

Our camp at the spring was broken up on the 
afternoon of September 15th, when we moved south- 
ward to Freeman's ford, where we crossed the Rap- 
pahannock and took up a position between Culpep- 
per and Stone House mountain. The whole army 
was now in position between the rivers Rappahan- 
nock and the Rapidan. 

About the end of September the nth and 12th 
corps were detached from the Army of the Potomac 
and under General Hooker were sent to the west to 
reenforce our army operating around Chattanooga. 
Tenn. Longstreet's corps of the rebel army had pre- 
viously been sent to the same point to reenforce 
General Bragg. 

We remained in the vicinity of Culpepper until 
October 12th, when it was found that Lee's army had 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 99 

crossed the Rapidan and was turning our right. This 
caused a retrograde movement of our whole army. 
Our division moved to the rear on October nth, the 
57th acting as flankers on the left of the column. At 
one point, when on a high hill, we had a fine view of 
a cavalry battle which was going on in our rear near 
Brandy Station. In the evening we crossed the Rap- 
pahannock at Freeman's ford and halted for the night 
in a pine woods. On the morning of the 12th we 
learned that the enemy had driven back our cavalry, 
and was crossing the river at our old camp at Sulphur 
Springs, about three miles above us. Our march to 
the rear continued on a by-road which brought us to 
the Warrenton branch of the O. & A. R. R. about 
three miles east o ! f Warrenton. We rested here for 
a while and then after a march of about five miles 
further we halted for the night. 

About 4 p. m. on the 13th we encountered the 
enemy's cavalry at Auburn creek. Our brigade held 
the advance of the column on this day, and the 57th 
was the leading regiment. Companies A and K acted 
as advance guard. These companies deployed on both 
sides of the road and opened fire on the rebels, who 
were dismounted and advancing through the woods 
and fields. Our firing soon brought up the rest of 
the brigade and a battery, whereupon, the rebels see- 
ing we were well supported, mounted their horses 
and retreated at a lively gait. Several men of our 
regiment were slightly wounded in this affair. When 
the skirmish was over we resumed our march, and 
about dark we reached the English settlement called 

LOfC. 



IOO HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

Greenwich, where we encamped, and our regiment 
was posted as pickets. 

We started again next morning and moved to 
Centerville, via Bristow and Manassas Junction. Late 
in the afternoon, the 2d corps, under General Warren, 
acting as rear guard, had a severe battle with Hill's 
corps, in which Warren was victorious, capturing a 
battery, several battle flags, and about four hundred 
prisoners. 

On the 15th we moved to Fairfax Station and 
here on the following day, our regiment for the first 
time witnessed the solemn spectacle of a military exe- 
cution. A private of the 5th Michigan who had de- 
serted to the enemy and had been recaptured, was 
shot for desertion. 

In the late movements, General Lee's object was to 
gain our rear and cut us off from Washington, but 
when we reached the strong position on the heights 
of Centerville, he found he was foiled, and then it 
became his turn to retreat. He was followed by our 
cavalry and several brisk skirmishes took place be- 
tween our troopers and the enemy. 

On the 19th our division was again moving, this 
time with our faces toward the Rappahannock, and at 
night we encamped near Bristow station. On the 
20th we marched through Greenwich and encamped 
two miles beyond the town. On the 21st we passed 
through Auburn, and over the ground where Gen. 
Alex. Hay's division of the 2d corps had engaged 
the enemy a few days before, and at night we en- 
camped near Catlett's station. From this date until 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. IOI 

November 7th we moved to various points along the 
railroad, which having been destroyed by the enemy, 
made it necessary for us to rebuild it, consequently 
our advance was slow. 

Near Warrenton Junction, at 5 a. m. on November 
5th we broke camp and moved to Kelly's ford on the 
Rappahannock. Here our crossing was disputed by 
the enemy and a brisk skirmish ensued. They finally 
relinquished their attempts to hold the ford when we 
crossed over and encamped about dark. In this skir- 
mish, while Capt. T. L. Maynard, our brigade inspec- 
tor, was giving a drink of water to a wounded rebel, 
he was mortally wounded and died next morning. 

While we were fighting at Kelly's ford, the 5th 
and 6th corps had a fight with the enemy, whom they 
drove out of their works at Rappahannock station, 
about eight miles above Kelly's ford. 

On the 8th we reached Brandy Station and after 
a few days we moved into the woods near James Bar- 
bour's house, and occupied a lot of huts, which had 
lately been constructed by the rebels, to be used as 
winter quarters, but they had now fallen back beyond 
the Rapidan river. We remained in this camp for 
a few weeks and then were once more on the move 
to take part in what is known as the "Mine Run cam- 
paign." 

On the morning of November 26th we moved out 
of camp, and in the evening crossed the Rapidan at 
Jacobs' ford, without interruption from the enemy. 
The advance was resumed next morning and about 
4 p. m. our division was hurried to the front to relieve 



102 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

the 3d division, which had become engaged with John- 
son's division of Ewell's corps. We got into a brisk 
little fight in which the 57th had seven wounded. This 
action occurred near Locust Grove. It appears that 
our corps commander, General French, had been in- 
structed to move on a road which would have led 
him between the corps of Hill and Ewell, who were 
miles apart, but he got on the wrong road and ran 
against the corps of Ewell, which brought on the 
engagement. The enemy retreated during the night 
and the next morning their army was concentrated, 
which our movements the day before were intended 
to prevent. 

On the 28th we started again and after marching 
all day in the rain we came up with the enemy, who 
were occupying a strong position near the western 
bank of Mine run. This stream, flowing north, is 
deep and sluggish, with steep banks, and empties into 
the Rapidan at Mitchell's ford. 

On the 29th the regiment lay in rear of a battery 
as a support, and at night a part of the regiment was 
sent out to the run to support the picket line. It was 
bitter cold, and we were allowed no fires, so we had 
a very uncomfortable night of it. 

General Warren, with the 2d corps, held the ex- 
treme left of the line, and he thought that he could 
carry the enemy's position in his front, if strongly re- 
enforced. Early in the morning one division of the 
6th corps, and the 2d and 3d divisions of the 3d corps 
were sent him. We of Birney's division were in the 
center, posted along the brow of a hill with the enemy 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. IO3 

behind breastworks about three-fourths of a mile in 
our front. We were to hold ourselves in readiness, 
upon hearing the sound of Warren's guns, to charge 
the enemy's works. Warren, upon further examina- 
tion of the enemy's lines, informed General Meade 
that the enemy's lines were too strong to hazard an 
attack. We were not sorry when we heard this, for 
it would have been extremely perilous to have charged 
over the broad open field in our front up to the ene- 
my's works. 

On December ist a snow storm set in, and after 
dark we marched to the rear, and recrossed the Rapi- 
dan at Culpepper ford about daylight on the 2d. 
About 9 o'clock our march was resumed, the 57th and 
the 63d Pennsylvania acting as wagon guard to our 
long train. Having run out of rations we were very 
hungry, but we contrived to get something to eat be- 
fore night. On December 3d we reached our old 
camps, and finding our huts still standing, we soon 
had them roofed, and were again comfortably housed. 

A few days after we got settled down, the question 
of reenlistment was much discussed among the men. 
The War Department had issued General Order No. 
191, which allowed every man who reenlisted a bounty 
of $400.00 (to be paid in installments) and a furlough 
for thirty days. Before leaving on furlough each 
man was to be paid $100.00, under the bounty act of 
July 22, 1 86 1, one month's pay in advance, $13.00, 
premium, $2.00, and first installment of bounty under 
General Order 191, $60.00, making a total of $175.00. 
Where three-fourths of the men present for duty in 



104 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

a regiment reenlisted, the regiment was allowed to go 
in a body with their arms to place of organization, 
and from thence the men could go to their homes on 
furlough. They were also entitled to be designated 
as "veteran regiments," and each man was allowed to 
wear the veteran stripes on the sleeves of his coat. 

On the 24th of December the regiment was formed 
in a hollow square in front of headquarters, and was 
then briefly addressed by Chaplain McAdam on the 
propriety of reenlisting. At the conclusion of the 
chaplain's remarks, Colonel Sides requested those who 
were willing to reenlist, to step three paces to the 
front. Over three-fourths of the men stepped for- 
ward, and, after giving three hearty cheers for the 
Union, were dismissed. Then for several days the 
officers and first sergeants were busy making out 
muster rolls, furloughs, and reenlistment papers. 

Among the men the furlough was the all-absorbing 
theme. When were they to be granted ? It is safe to 
say that a bounty of $1,000.00, without the furlough, 
would have secured but a small number of the men. 
But the assurance of spending thirty days at home 
was the great inducement for reenlisting, as most of 
the men had been absent from home for two years 
or more. 

January 8th, 1864, was the time appointed for the 
regiment to depart for the north, and long before day- 
light the boys were up and getting ready for their 
departure. The men who load not reenlisted were 
temporarily assigned to the 141st Pennsylvania. At 
7 o'clock a. m., in the midst of a snow storm, we 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 105 

boarded a train at Brandy station and were soon on 
our way to Washington, where we remained for a day 
and a night, and then started for Harrisburg. Here 
we deposited our arms and accoutrements in the arse- 
nal, and then the men departed by different routes 
for their homes. 

Our stay at home was one continual round of 
pleasure. There were parties, festivals and sleigh- 
rides without number and the men will never forget 
those halcyon days of our "veteran furlough." 

After the men had been at home for some days, 
many of their friends were anxious to enlist and re- 
turn with them to the army. On account of our suc- 
cess in obtaining recruits our furlough was extended. 
When we left for home the regiment numbered barely 
two hundred men. After an absence of forty-five 
days we returned with nearly five hundred men in 
our ranks. 

Our old flag which had been torn by the bullets 
of many battles was left at Harrisburg while we 
were on furlough, and when we returned to the front 
we received a new one, with an appropriate speech, 
from the hands of Governor Curtin. 

On the 25th of February we rejoined our old bri- 
gade near Culpepper, Va., and on the 27th we went 
with the division on a reconnoissance to James City. 
We were gone two days, during which time nothing 
of importance occurred. 

General Grant, having been appointed lieutenant- 
general, and placed in command of all our armies, 
made his headquarters with the Army of the Potomac 



106 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

some time in March, 1864. About the 16th of March 
the army was reorganized, the 1st and 3d corps were 
disbanded and the divisions assigned to other corps. 
The 1 st and 2d division of the 3d corps (the old divi- 
sions of Kearny and Hooker) were assigned to the 
2d corps, commanded by General Hancock. The 3d 
division was assigned to the 6th corps. Our division, 
now designated as the 3d division, of the 2d corps, 
was commanded by General Birney. It consisted of 
two brigades commanded by Generals Ward and 
Hays. Our brigade (now designated as the 2d bri- 
gade, 3d division, 2d corps) was commanded by Gen. 
Alexander Hays and was comprised of the following 
named regiments: 4th and 17th Maine; 3d and 5th 
Michigan; 93d New York; 57th, 63d and 105th Penn- 
sylvania, and 1st United States Sharpshooters. The 
68th and 114th Pennsylvania of our old brigade were 
detached, and acted as provost guard at army head- 
quarters. The 141st Pennsylvania was attached to 
Ward's brigade. 

The men were proud of the record of the army 
corps to which they had formerly belonged, and felt 
very glad to know that they would be allowed to wear 
the old badge of the corps in which they had pre- 
viously served. Under the reorganization the Army 
of the Potomac consisted of three corps, as follows: 
2d corps, General Hancock; 5th corps, General War- 
ren; 6th corps, General Sedgewick. The 9th corps, 
under General Burnside, joined the Army of the 
Potomac about the 5th of May. 

The great campaign of 1864 began soon after mid- 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 107 

night on May 3d. Our corps, preceded by Gregg's 
cavalry, moved out, and about daylight crossed the 
Rapidan on a pontoon bridge at Ely's ford, and on 
the night of the 4th we bivouacked on the old Chan- 
cellorsville battlefield, on the ground over which we 
had fought one year before. 

On the morning of the 5th we moved down the 
plank road to a point about two miles beyond the 
Chancellor house, when we turned to the right, which 
brought us to Todd's tavern about noon. Here we 
cooked our coffee and then resumed our march until 
we struck the Brock road, where we turned to the 
right and formed a line of battle facing west. Soon 
after we were ordered back into the road, and then 
at double quick we went up the road until we reached 
the Orange plank road. Here we saw General Han- 
cock, who ordered General Hays to throw in his first 
regiment on the right of the plank road. This hap- 
pened to be the 57th, and as soon as our left had 
cleared the road we were faced to the left and 
advanced in line of battle facing west, with the left 
of the regiment resting on the plank road. We were 
now in what is known as the Wilderness. This is a 
tract of land of about twenty thousand acres covered 
principally with small pines and scrub oaks. It 
formerly belonged to Governor Spottswood, and was 
once covered with heavy timber, which was cut down 
and made into charcoal, used for smelting iron in the 
old fashioned furnaces, of which there were many in 
this vicinity. We continued to grope our way through 
the thicket and swamps and finally met the enemy and 



108 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

opened fire. The whole division was soon engaged 
and the roar of the musketry was terrific. In our 
front the enemy was less than two hundred feet from 
us, but so dense was the underbrush that it was almost 
impossible to see them. We had the advantage of 
the enemy, who were on higher ground, and many of 
their balls passed over us. The left of the regiment 
had the hottest part of the line, as it rested on the 
plank road and was subjected to the fire of the rebels 
who were on the other side of the road. The left 
began to break, when the 17th Maine coming up on 
the left of the road soon gave the enemy enough to 
do on that side. The battle lasted until nearly dark, 
when we were relieved, and moved a short distance to 
the rear, where we remained for the night. 

On the morning of May 6th our corps was ordered 
to begin the attack at 5 o'clock. We at once moved 
out the plank road and soon attacked the enemy, this 
time on the left of the road. The fighting for a while 
was all in our favor and we drove the enemy (Hill's 
corps) back for over a mile and were just about enter- 
ing the open fields around the Widow Tapp's house, 
when Longstreet's fresh corps arrived and reenforced 
Hill, whose corps was in great confusion. Owing to 
the density of the woods through which we had been 
chasing the enemy, our lines had become much dis- 
ordered, and before that could be rectified, Longstreet 
attacked with his usual vigor and we were in turn 
forced back. We retired fighting until we reached the 
Brock road, where we took a position on the left of 
the plank road in rear of the entrenchments that had 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 109 

been thrown up along the Brock road. Here about 
4:15 p. m. the enemy charged the works and drove 
back the first line, when we advanced and retook them, 
capturing a number of prisoners. 

On the morning of the 7th we made a reconnois- 
sance, crossing over to the right of the plank road and 
advancing over three-fourths of a mile, when we 
found the enemy entrenched behind strong works. We 
had a sharp fight, and were then withdrawn, and again 
took position on the Brock road. 

According to the monthly report of the regiment, 
dated April 30, 1864, we had present for duty 18 
officers and 357 men. As this was but a few days 
before the battle, it will give a nearly correct estimate 
of the number of men the regiment took into the field 
on May 5th, on which day our greatest losses occurred. 
During the three days' fighting our losses were 22 
enlisted men killed; 4 officers and 128 enlisted men 
wounded and 3 enlisted men missing. Of those killed 
none was more deeply mourned than First Sergeant 
Duke Miller, of Company E. He was one of the 
bravest and best men in the regiment, and his social 
and intellectual qualities were admired by all who 
knew him. Colonel Sides and Lieut. F. V. Shaw 
were among the wounded. 

Senior Captain A. H. Nelson had command of the 
regiment as Colonel Side's successor until the last 
week in June, when Major Neeper, who had been 
captured at Gettysburg, returned and took command. 

Gen. Alexander Hays, commander of our brigade, 
was killed in the battle fought on the afternoon of the 



IIO HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

5th. He was one of the bravest men that ever lived, 
and an accomplished soldier. With the exception of 
a short time when he served in the 2d corps, in 1863, 
he had been identified with the old 1st division of the 
3d corps since the Army of the Potomac was organ- 
ized. He was a native of Venango county, Pa., and 
was a graduate of West Point and had served with 
honor in the Mexican war. He entered the war for 
the Union as colonel of the 63d Pennsylvania Volun- 
teers. At Gettysburg he commanded a division in 
Hancock's corps. His reputation as a fighter was 
well known in both the Union and Confederate 
armies. 

The writer was wounded on the morning of May 
6th, and went to the rear in company with the color 
sergeant, Cyrus P. Slaven, also wounded. On our 
way to the rear we turned into the woods along the 
plank road where we had fought the afternoon before. 
The wounded and killed had all been removed, but the 
trees were witnesses of the terrible musketry fire that 
had raged here. Not a tree or a bush but bore marks 
of being hit by a bullet. How any of us got out of 
there without being hit is a mystery. 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. I 1 1 



CHAPTER X. 

BY R. G. MADGE AND M. C. ZAHNIZER. 

The Movement to Spottsylvania Court House — General Sedg- 
wick Killed — Hancock's Grand Charge of May 12th — 
Great Capture of Prisoners, Guns and Colors — The Fa- 
mous Oak Tree — Ewell's Effort to Capture Our Wagon 
Train — Losses in the Fifty-Seventh at Spottsylvania — 
Movement to North Anna River — Fight at Chesterfield 
Ford — We Cross the Pamunkey — Skirmish at Haw's Shop 
and Totopotomoy Creek — Battle cf Cold Harbor — Our 
Colors Struck and Badly Torn by a Piece of Shell — Flank 
Movement to the James River — March to Petersburg — 
Severe Fighting at Hare's Hill — Battle of June 22d — 
Losses in the Fifty-Seventh — Fort Alex. Hays — Peters- 
burg — We Move to the North Side of the James — Straw- 
berry Plains — Return to Petersburg — The "Bvrnside 
Mine" — General Mott in Command of Our Division — 
Deep Bottom — Other Marching and Fighting Around 
Petersburg. 

Many of the men in the Army of the Potomac, 
after the battle of the Wilderness had ended, were 
heard to say : "We have had the usual three days' 
righting on this side of the river, and by about to- 
morrow night we will be back in our old camps." That 
had too often been the case before, but there was one 
at the head of the army now whose motto was "for- 
ward," and "Grant is making another movement by 
the left flank," soon became a common saying. 

On the night of the 7th the movement to Spott- 
sylvania Court House began. We moved along the 
Brock road in the direction of Todd's tavern. On 
the morning of the 8th we had a severe engagement, 



112 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

when we entrenched and had more fighting during 
the day. On the 9th we were not actively engaged, 
except in skirmishing. On this day Gen. John Sedg- 
wick, commanding the 6th corps, was killed while 
directing the fire of a battery. 

On the morning of the 10th, Hancock's corps 
crossed the Po river. The resistance to our (Bir- 
ney's) division was stubborn and we had some severe 
fighting, after which the 57th was detailed to go out 
the Anderson's tavern road, to reconnoiter. We were 
driven back across Glady run near Waite's shop, 
Capt. A. H. Nelson, commanding the regiment, losing 
his horse. The whole corps was then drawn back 
across the river. In the afternoon there was some 
hard fighting and very heavy artillery firing. 

On the nth we built a line of breastworks, and 
at night, in the rain, we took up our line of march 
for Spottsylvania Court House, moving all night. 
The 2d corps had been selected to charge the enemy's 
works on that part of the field held by General 
Johnson's division of Ewell's corps. Long before 
daylight our troops were being massed for the impor- 
tant work in hand. Major Mitchell, of General Han- 
cock's staff, says that the line was formed with Bir- 
ney's division on the right in two lines, Barlow's 
division on Birney's left in column of regiments, and 
Mott's and Gibbons' divisions in rear of Birney and 
Barlow as supports. This force formed a rectangu- 
lar mass of about twenty thousand men. 

The troops stood in the cold rain shivering, and 
anxiously waiting for the dawn and lifting of the 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 113 

fog, that they might be ordered forward. At 4 130 
a. m., the order to advance was given, when the huge 
mass moved forward, and soon after burst into cheers, 
and under a hot fire captured the enemy's works. 
This charge resulted in the capture of four thousand 
rebel prisoners, among them Maj. Gen. Edward 
Johnson, Brig. Gen. George H. Stuart, thirty battle 
flags, twenty pieces of artillery, with horses and cais- 
sons, and several thousand stand of small arms. 
Among the prisoners were nearly all that was left of 
Jackson's famous " Stonewall brigade." In the 
advance, the 57th was directly in front of a rebel 
battery, where in passing over the works, Color Cor- 
poral Spencer killed one of the batterymen by club- 
bing him with his musket. The advance was con- 
tinued until we reached the second line of the enemy's 
works, when they were reenforced by fresh troops, 
when we fell back to the first line we captured, and 
took position behind the works. 

Our position was just to the left of where the 
notable oak tree stood. The tree was eighteen inches 
in diameter and was actually cut down with musket 
balls fired from the opposing lines. A section of this 
tree, showing the work of the balls, has been on exhi- 
bition at the Centennial Exposition at Philadelphia, 
and at the World's Fair at Chicago, and is now in 
the Army Museum at Washington, D. C. 

We remained in position during the day and did 
some fighting, in which Corporal Spencer was shot 
through the head and killed. On the 13th we helped 
to bury the dead, and in the evening we moved fur- 



114 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

ther to the right. On the next morning the regi- 
ment made a reconnoissance, during which we had 
some skirmishing. On the 18th we attacked the 
enemy in their new works, but were repulsed, and in. 
the evening we moved to the vicinity of Anderson's 
Mills, on the west side of the Ny river. 

On the evening of the 19th we fought Ewell's 
corps, which had made its appearance on the Freder- 
icks pike and were trying to capture our wagon train. 
Tyler's division of new troops held them in check, 
until our division came up, when the enemy were 
repulsed, and our wagon train saved. About four 
hundred rebels were taken prisoners in this affair. 
About 9 o'clock in the evening the enemy retreated 
rapidly across the Ny. On the 20th we rejoined the 
corps at Anderson's Mill. 

In our fighting at Spottsylvania and vicinity our 
losses were 2 officers and 5 enlisted men killed, 2 
officers and 19 enlisted men wounded, and 4 enlisted 
men missing. First Lieut. Jeremiah Green, of Com- 
pany A, and First Lieut. John Bowers, of Company I, 
were killed. Both were promising young officers and 
their death was much regretted. Lieutenant Bowers 
had command of Company K, when he received a 
mortal wound. Capt. Edgar Williams, of Company 
E, who had for a long time been our color bearer, 
was mortally wounded about this time and died on 
May 23d. He was a man of undaunted courage and 
a Christian soldier. 

On the night of the 20th we started south by way 
of Guinea Station and Bowling Green, through to 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 115 

Milford Station, and took up a position on the right 
bank of the Mattapony river. This was twenty miles 
distant from our position of the morning. 

We had a fight at Guinea Station on the 21st, and 
on the 22d we had a skirmish with the enemy's cav- 
alry at Athens, still holding our position at Milford 
Station. 

At 5 o'clock on the morning of the 23d we moved 
to Chesterfield Ford on the North Anna river, and 
took position on the north bank. At 6 p. m. we 
advanced and took the enemy's works by a charge of 
Pierce's and Egan's brigades of Birney's position. 

On the morning of the 24th part of our corps 
crossed the river, but the 57th did not cross, it being 
on the skirmish line during the day at a point further 
down the river, but at night we crossed the river and 
joined the rest of the corps. 

During the 25th and 26th we lay in the entrenched 
line on the south side of the North Anna. On the 
night of the 26th we recrosseo! the river and marched 
to the Pamunkey river, crossing it at Huntleys, four 
miles above Hanovertown, about noon on the 28th. 
We then moved to the vicinity of Haw's shop, where 
we had a skirmish with the enemy's cavalry and some 
South Carolina infantry. 

On the morning of the 29th, we moved up the 
Haw's shop road, with considerable fighting at Toto- 
potomoy creek, keeping in close proximity to the ene- 
my's lines. On the 30th we had severe skirmishing 
in which artillery was brought into action, when at 
7 140 p. m. General Meade ordered the attack to cease. 



Il6 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

On the 31st the infantry line was pressed up close 
to the enemy, and heavy skirmishing was kept up all 
day, but without bringing on a general engagement, 
the enemy being strongly entrenched. 

On the night of June 1st we left the Totopotomoy, 
and moved to Cold Harbor, arriving at 6 a. m. on the 
2d, when Birney's division was detached and sent to 
support the 18th corps on our left. Our army was 
now on ground over which it had fought during the 
Seven Days' battles, two years previous. 

The order for a general attack was counter- 
manded for June 2d, but the next day at 4 130 a. m. we 
made an assault and drove the enemy back to their 
main line of entrenchments, but could proceed no 
further on account of the heavy cross fire we were 
subjected to. We were under a heavy fire until noon, 
when our division (Birney's) was ordered to the sup- 
port of the 5th corps. 

On coming into line for their support, the colors 
of the 57th were struck by a piece of the enemy's shell, 
cutting the flag staff in two, and tearing out one 
entire stripe right in the center of the flag. 

We were under a heavy fire until darkness set in, 
when the fighting ceased. We remained in this posi- 
tion until June 12th, being under heavy skirmish and 
picket firing during the daytime and under heavy 
artillery fire at night, allowing scarcely any sleep, and 
during the day it was extremely warm and sultry. 

On the evening of the 12th we were stationed in 
our entrenched line and remained there until the other 
troops had cleared the roads, when we moved by way 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 117 

of Dispatch Station to Long Bridge, crossing the 
Chickahominy river, and then moved towards Charles 
City Court House, by way of St. Mary's church and 
Walkers. We arrived at the James river on the 
evening of the 14th, crossing at Wilcox's Landing 
on transports to Windmill Point, arriving on the 
south side of the river early on the morning of the 
15th. On the afternoon of that day we started for 
Petersburg, arriving at that place on the evening of 
the same day after a march of sixteen miles. At 
Harrison's creek on the way we had a brisk skirmish, 
and then halted for the night near an old dirt fort. 

On the 1 6th General Hancock was placed in com- 
mand of all the troops on the south side of the river. 
During the day we made several reconnoissances, and 
in the evening at 6 o'clock we made a charge down 
the hill and through an old rebel camp, but were 
obliged to fall back to our first position. 

On the morning of the 17th Birney's division 
pushed forward across Harrison's creek, and at night 
we built a line of works on the west side of the creek. 

Early on the 18th, with General Birney in com- 
mand of the 2d corps, we moved up to, and in, the 
Prince George Court House road, in front of the 
Hare house, and from there we made a charge on the 
enemy's works, which ran across a field about two 
hundred yards in our front and almost parallel with 
the before mentioned road. Our line advanced about 
one hundred yards, when the enemy's fire became so 
severe that we were obliged to fall back to the road 
and seek cover. During the day we made three dif- 



Il8 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

ferent charges on the enemy's works, but they were 
so formidable and well manned that we failed to reach 
them. In the third attempt the 57th reached a ditch, 
where we lay down and let them fire over us from 
both sides until about 6 o'clock in the evening, when 
we were recalled, and then returned to the main line 
in the Prince George road. We were then relieved 
by the 1st Maine heavy artillery (acting as infantry), 
when we moved back to the rear of the road. The 
Maine regiment made a gallant charge, but were 
also repulsed with great loss. While they were 
making this charge, a minie ball from the enemy's 
lines pierced the flag staff of our regimental colors 
about eight inches above the color sergeant's head. 

During the night of the 18th we moved out in 
front of the Hare house, and built a line of breast- 
works, which position remained substantially the 
same during the entire siege. We remained in these 
works during the 19th and 20th. On the 21st we 
moved to the left of the Jerusalem plank road and 
took a position on the left of the 5th corps, and there 
built another line of works. 

It was during these first days of the fighting 
around Petersburg that our adjutant, Clark M. 
Lyons, was killed, as was also Henry M. Adams, 
second lieutenant of Company I. Captain J. R. Lyons 
was severely wounded, and about twenty-five enlisted 
men were killed or wounded. 

On the morning of the 22d we advanced about 
half a mile toward the rebel line, where we built a line 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 119 

of works, with nothing to work with but our bayo- 
nets and tin plates. 

In the afternoon we had a hard fight with 
Mahone's division, which succeeded in making a flank 
movement, and getting on our left flank and rear, 
when we were compelled to fall back to our position 
of the 2 1 st. In this action our brigade lost heavily 
in prisoners, our regiment losing about twenty, 
among them Lieut. James F. Ruger, of Company F. 
A brave and gallant sergeant of Company K, Pat. 
Dempsey, was also captured here, and died in Ander- 
sonville prison. In the evening we again advanced 
and retook our former position. It was between these 
two lines that Fort Alex. Hays was built afterward, 
and named in honor of our old brigade commander. 
We remained here for some time, doing picket duty 
and building entrenchments, for it was now decided 
that Petersburg must be besieged. This old Virginia 
town had, in i860, a population of a little over 
eighteen thousand. It is situated on the south side 
of the Appomattox river about twenty-five miles from 
its mouth at City Point, and is twenty-three miles 
south of Richmond. 

When we first reached the front of Petersburg, 
Lee's army depended for its supplies on two rail- 
roads, running south, — the Weldon railroad, and the 
Lynchburg (South Side) railroad. To encircle 
Petersburg as completely as a siege demanded, it was 
essential that these two roads should be covered by 
our army. The first was controlled by us, in the 



120 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

last week in August, but the South Side never, until 
the city fell. 

Before the fall of the city our lines of investment 
extended from Appomattox, below Petersburg to 
Hatcher's Run, on the southwest, a distance of about 
twenty-five miles. To supply our army a railroad was 
constructed in rear of our lines, which connected with 
the Petersburg & City Point railroad near Broadway 
Landing. City Point at the confluence of the Appo- 
mattox with the James, was our depot of supplies, 
and was also the headquarters of General Grant. It 
was a very busy place in 1864, but in ordinary times 
it is but an unimportant hamlet. Our front line of 
works consisted of huge earthen forts, and redoubts 
in which were mounted heavy siege guns and mor- 
tars. The forts were connected by well constructed 
breastworks, in front of which was slashed timber or 
abattis. So strong were these works that with the 
aid of the artillery, they could be held by a small 
force of infantry, which enabled General Grant to 
detach largely from his forces for operations against 
the enemy's flanks, and elsewhere. Our cavalry was 
also kept busy raiding the enemy's communications 
and doing him as much damage as possible. 

The enemy's workes were on the same plan as 
ours and gave them the same opportunities. 

On the afternoon of the 26th of July our corps 
made a forced march of thirty miles, and was sent 
to the north side of the James, crossing on a pon- 
toon bridge at Jones Neck, on the morning of the 
27th, and soon came up to the enemy, who were 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 121 

entrenched in strong force at Bailey's creek, from the 
mouth of the creek to Fussel's mill. Here we had 
some severe fighting on the 28th and 29th, in which 
the 57th lost quite a number of men. This fight is 
called in official records "Strawberry Plains." 

On the evening of the 29th we recrossed the 
James and Appomattox, and marched back to a point 
in rear of where the " Burnside mine " was to be 
exploded, and here we relieved a division of the 9th 
corps, in order that they might take part in the 
assault that was to follow the explosion. This mine 
had been carefully and skillfully constructed by Lieut. 
Col. Henry Pleasants and his men of the 48th Penn- 
sylvania. From a point on the 9th corps lines, where 
the Union and rebel lines were close together, a gal- 
lery was run five hundred and ten feet in length, termi- 
nating under a rebel fort garrisoned by Pegram's 
battery and the 18th and part of the 23d South Caro- 
lina infantry. The powder was put in the mine in 
eight magazines with one thousand pounds in each. 
The mine was to have been exploded at 4:30 a. m., 
but owing to the fuse going out, another half hour 
went by before it was considered safe to enter the 
shaft to mend and relight the fuse. Finally two brave 
men, Lieut. Jacob Douty and Sergt. Henry Rees, of 
the 48th Pennsylvania, entered the shaft, spliced the 
fuse, which was relit, and at a little past 5 o'clock the 
mighty explosion followed, sending into the air a 
great mass of earth, with which were mingled bodies 
of men and parts of muskets and artillery carriages. 
The explosion opened a crater one hundred and 



122 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

twenty feet long, sixty wide, and twenty-five feet 
deep. The enemy in their surrounding forts were so 
bewildered that it was fully a half hour before they 
opened fire or attempted to reoccupy the ground at the 
crater. Thus far everything went well for our side, 
but that charge of the troops which was to have fol- 
lowed the explosion, was miserably conducted, and 
ended with disaster and the loss of many brave men. 

About the ist of August, Gen. D. B. Birney, who 
had for a long time been in command of our division, 
was assigned to the command of the ioth army corps. 
He was succeeded in the command of our division by 
Gen. Gershom Mott, who entered the service in 1861 
as colonel of the 6th New Jersey volunteers. For 
the greater part of the time that we were in front of 
Petersburg, our brigade was commanded by Brig. 
Gen. Byron R. Pierce, formerly colonel of the 3d 
Michigan volunteers. 

After the Burnside mine explosion we moved 
back to our old camping ground at Fort Alex. Hays 
and remained there until the 13th of August, when 
another expedition to the north side of the James was 
put on foot. The 2d corps was marched to City Point 
and there got on board of transports, which, in order 
to deceive any scouts the enemy might have there- 
abouts, were at first started down the James, but after 
dark they were turned about and proceeded up the 
river until we reached Jones Neck, where we landed 
on the north side of the river. We moved out the 
Newmarket road and soon found the enemy in force 
on the west side of Bailey's creek. On the night of 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 1 23 

the 14th the division was massed at Fussel's mill, and 
on the 15th we were maneuvering all day to get into 
position. 

On the 1 6th we engaged the enemy above Fus- 
sel's mill, where we lost quite a number of men, and 
took between two and three hundred prisoners. In 
this fight Col. Calvin A. Craig, of the 105th Penn- 
sylvania and temporarily in command of our brigade, 
was killed. He was an excellent officer and his loss 
was deeply felt by the whole brigade. We remained 
on the north side of the river during the 17th and 
1 8th, keeping up a continual threatening attitude by 
changing position and skirmishing. On the after- 
noon of the 1 8th another fight was brought on by 
the enemy leaving their works and coining out to 
attack us. 

On the night of the 18th our (Mott's) division 
recrossed the James and marched to the extreme left 
of the line to reenforce the 5th corps under General 
Warren, who was about making an attempt to cap- 
ture the Weldon railroad at the Globe tavern or 
"Yellow House." 

On August 25th our division was ordered to 
Ream's station on the Weldon road, to reenforce the 
other two divisions of our corps who had a severe 
fight there. When we arrived we were under fire, but 
the other divisions were withdrawn, and we were 
ordered back to the vicinity of Fort Hays, where we 
went on picket and established a new picket line at 
night. 

From this date until September 30th we remained 



124 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

in the front line of Vvorks between the Jerusalem plank 
road and the Yellow House doing picket and fatigue 
duty, and occasionally having a skirmish with the 
enemy on the picket line. 

On September 30th in compliance with orders we 
packed up, and were ready to move at a moment's 
notice, and remained so for the day, but did not move 
out of camp. About noon, October 1st, we were 
ordered to fall in, when we marched to Hancock Sta- 
tion on the United States Military railroad, where 
we boarded cars which ran us down to the Yellow 
House, or Warren's Station, where we got off and 
marched about two miles and then bivouacked in rear 
of the 9th corps. At 7 a. m., October 2d, we moved 
out to the left of the 9th corps, advanced through a 
thick woods and charged with the rest of the brigade, 
on a line of the enemy's works, through a thick slash- 
ing. This line appeared only to have been occupied 
by a few pickets, who fled on our approach, which 
gave us a bloodless victory. We remained for half 
an hour in these works and agian advanced, passed 
over a second line of works, and advanced about 
half a mile, where we found the enemy strongly 
entrenched, and obstinately resisting our further 
advance. About 3 p. m. we were deployed as flank- 
ers and were to act as provost. The rest of the bri- 
gade charged the enemy's works, but were repulsed 
and fell back to the line we occupied. We remained 
in this position until about 4 p. m., when we were 
relieved by the 9th corps, and then marched back 
about a mile and a half, to the 5th corps, where we 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 1 25 

bivouacked for the night. October 3d we were under 
arms at 4 a.m., and furnished a detail to work on the 
fortifications, the rest of the regiment remaining in 
camp. On the 4th we were at work again on the 
fortifications. About 8 p. m. on the 8th we marched 
back to our old camp at Fort Alex. Hays, where we 
arrived at midnight. In this affair we had three men 
severely wounded. The engagement is known as 
"Peeble's Farm" or "Poplar Springs Church." 



126 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 



CHAPTER XI. 

BY E. C. STROUSS. 

Recruits — Dangerous Picket Duty — Muster-out of Old Regi- 
ments — Composition of the Brigade — Expedition Against 
the South Side Railroad — Battle of Boydton Plank Road 
or Hatcher's Run — Disguised Rebels Capture Our Picket 
Line — Election Day — Thanksgiving Dinner of Roast Tur- 
key — Change of Camp — Raid on Weldon Railroad — A 
Hard March Returning — "Applejack" — General Hum- 
phreys in Command of the Second Corps. 

During the month of September the regiment 
received about one hundred recruits, principally sub- 
stitutes and drafted men. Their term of service was 
one year. After they were fairly broken in, they 
made good and reliable soldiers. 

Picket duty during the month of October in front 
of Fort Alex. Hays was quite frequent for both 
officers and men. It was also dangerous at night, 
when picket firing was kept up all night by both sides. 
On our side the picket posts consisted of five or six 
men and a noncommissioned officer. These posts were 
protected by a small breastwork, in front of which 
was a pit in which was posted a vidette, who was 
relieved every hour or sometimes every half hour. 
These posts were about fifty yards apart and were not 
connected by any works, which made it dangerous for 
the officer in charge of the line, while making the 
rounds of the posts, which he was obliged to do twice 
every night. On the part of the line picketed by our 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 1 27 

brigade, the line was in the woods, but on our right 
in the open ground the posts were connected by a deep 
trench. The woods in which we were posted ran to a 
point where it met the open field. When we quit 
doing picket duty on this part of the line, about No- 
vember 30th, the trees at this point of woods were 
so splintered with musket balls that they resembled a, 
lot of old fashioned splint brooms. Our lines were 
relieved at dark, and from that time firing was kept 
up until daylight, when it usually ceased until even- 
ing. 

During the latter part of summer and early part 
of autumn of 1864, the time of many of the old regi- 
ments (who had not reenlisted) expired, and they 
were mustered out. In this way we lost in our bri- 
gade the 3d Michigan and 63d Pennsylvania, both 
old and renowned regiments. The men of the 63d 
who had reenlisted, and the recruits, were transferred 
to the 105th Pennsylvania and were mustered out 
with it at the close of the war. 

Our brigade now consisted of the 1st Massachu- 
setts heavy artillery (acting as infantry), 5th Michi- 
gan, 93d New York, 57th, 84th, 105th and 141st 
Pennsylvania, and 17th Maine, and three companies 
of the 1st United States Sharpshooters. The bri- 
gade was commanded by Brig. Gen. Byron R. Pierce, 
who retained command of it until the war ended. 

About the 24th of October orders were issued and 
preparations made for another movement by the left 
flank, this time the object being the seizure of the 
South Side railroad. To assist this movement the 



128 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

Army of the James was to make a demonstration 
against Richmond on the north bank of the James. 
The expedition on the left consisted of Hancock's 2d 
and Warren's 5th corps supported by the 9th corps 
under General Parke. On the afternoon of the 25th, 
at 10 o'clock, our division was withdrawn from the 
works at Fort Alex. Hays and vicinity and moved to 
the rear and bivouacked for the night near the South- 
all house. At 2 p. m. on the 26th we continued our 
march across the open country in rear of the fortifi- 
cations to the Weldon railroad and halted for the 
night, at 5 p. m., near the Lewis house. 

At 3 130 a. m. we resumed our march, going down 
the Halifax road to the Church road, and on the latter 
past the Wyatt house to the Vaughn road, and down 
this road to the Cummings house, where we were 
massed, while the 2d division under General Egan 
drove the enemy from the ford on Hatcher's run, 
which was soon accomplished and the way opened for 
the crossing of the rest of the corps. Our division 
then crossed the run, moved up the Vaughn road a 
short distance to the Dabney's mill road, kept on this 
road until we reached the Boydton plank road, at a 
point about a mile and a half south of Burgess' tavern. 
This old tavern is located at the point where the 
plank road crosses Hatcher's run. A road known as 
the White Oak road, coming from the west, inter- 
sects the plank road at this point. 

We moved up the plank road to near the tavern, 
where we entered a large field surrounded on all sides 
by dense woods. Here our brigade formed a line of 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 1 29 

battle facing north, and then stacked arms and rested. 
It appears that we were waiting for the 5th corps 
under General Warren to connect with our right 
before commencing our attack. A drizzling rain had 
set in. 

While we were waiting for Warren's approach, 
Generals Grant, Meade and Hancock were in consulta- 
tion in the field near the point where the left of our 
regiment rested. For some twenty minutes we had 
a good view of those famous men. General Grant, 
considering his high rank, was quite plainly dressed, 
and no one would have taken him for the commander 
of all the armies of the United States. General 
Meade, who wore glasses and also was plainly attired, 
looked more like an old college professor than like a 
soldier. General Hancock always looked the grand 
solider which he was, whether he appeared in dress 
or fatigue uniform. 

Owing to the wooded nature of the country and 
the bad roads, General Warren did not get up to join 
us on the right before we were attacked by the enemy 
under General Mahone. Picket firing had begun in 
the woods on our right and growing heavier, General 
Pierce ordered the 5th Michigan and the 105th Penn- 
sylvania into the woods to support the pickets. The 
two regiments had been in the woods but a short 
time when they were fiercely attacked by the enemy 
in overwhelming numbers in front and on both flanks. 
The men of Michigan and Pennsylvania were of the 
best there were in the army, but they could not with- 
stand the great odds against them. They were obliged 



130 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

to fall back, leaving many of their dead and wounded, 
and both regiments lost their colors, although they 
were two of the best regiments in the division. When 
this attack began the rest of the brigade tried to 
change front, but the enemy were too close upon us 
and for a while considerable confusion existed. The 
greater part of our brigade fell back a short distance, 
to the woods on the west side of the plank road, where 
it reformed and drove the enemy back into the woods 
from which they had emerged. In this we were 
greatly assisted by our 2d division under General 
Egan. Egan had been engaged with the enemy near 
Burgess' tavern, and was about to storm the bridge 
which crosses Hatcher's run at that place when 
Mahone made his attack on our position. Egan 
promptly sent part of his command to our support 
and his men attacked Mahone's troops in the right 
flank and caused them to fall back into the woods 
with great loss, and also recapturing several of our 
guns which had fallen into the enemy's hands. 

General Mahone, who made this attack which 
frustrated our designs on the South Side railroad, 
was an old resident of Petersburg, and was thor- 
oughly acquainted with all the roads in that section, 
which enabled him to discover the gap in our lines 
between Hancock's and Warren's corps, so he "sailed 
in," with the result above stated. The rebel cavalry 
under Wade Hampton at the same time attacked our 
left and rear, but was kept in check by our cavalry 
under Gen. D. M. Gregg. 

We remained on the field until 1 1 p. m., when we 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 131 

withdrew and marched back by the same road over 
which we had advanced in the morning. About day- 
light we halted for a while near the Wyatt house and 
later on resumed the march and occupied our old 
camp near Fort Alex. Hays. 

Our regimental loss in the action of October 27th 
was 5 men wounded and 5 men missing or captured. 
The fight is generally called the "Battle of Boydton 
Plank Road" or "Hatcher's Run." By the men of 
our division it was generally spoken of as the "Bull 
Pen" fight. 

About dark on the evening of October 30th a num- 
ber of rebels, disguised, wearing our uniform, began 
to relieve our pickets in front of our 1st division on 
that part of the line held by the 69th and inth New 
York volunteers. It was customary at the time to 
relieve our pickets at dark, and the enemy took ad- 
vantage of that circumstance by dressing themselves 
in our clothes, which they had taken from some or 
our deserters, and began to relieve our pickets. In 
this way they captured a good portion of the line 
assisted by other men from their works which were 
close by. But fortunately the regular relief from our 
side was approaching and after a little skirmishing 
succeeded in reestablishing the line, but not before 
great commotion was caused in our camps by the re- 
port that the picket line had been captured. All the 
regiments were ordered out under arms and manned 
the breastworks for an hour or so, when quiet reigned 
again and the men were sent back to their tents. 

The 57th, however, was ordered to the extreme 



132 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

front to support the picket line. At this point in front 
of Fort Hays our picket line was about a mile in 
front, the intervening space being mostly covered by 
a broad slashing and a strip of woods. Through 
this we marched and stumbled until we reached the 
picket line, where we were posted in a deep trench or 
covered way. There was a parapet at the top of the 
trench, behind which our pickets were stationed, and 
these, and the enemy's pickets kept firing at each 
other all night, as was usual at that time, on that 
part of the line. The night was quite chilly, and as 
but small fires could be built in the trenches we passed 
a very disagreeable night. We were relieved next 
morning and went back to camp, where we spent 
most of the day in sleeping. 

Tuesday, November 8th, was election day. Presi- 
dent Lincoln was the Republican, and Gen. George B. 
McClellan the Democratic candidate for the office of 
President. Most of the Northern states had enacted 
laws that soldiers in the field should be entitled to vote 
if they were of lawful age, the same as if they were 
in their respective states. The different states had 
appointed commissioners whose duty it was to furnish 
the regiments with the necessary election papers and 
tickets. The vote of the 57th stood 95 votes for 
Lincoln and 33 for McClellan. The regiment was 
recruited in those parts of Pennsylvania which were 
strongly Republican and it was but natural that the 
regiment was the same. The vote, however, in the 
entire army was for Lincoln by a large majority. 

In the fore part of the war it was thought at head- 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 1 33 

quarters of the army that political discussions among 
the soldiers should be discouraged, or prohibited. But 
what could keep an army of freeman from discussing 
political questions? Discussions of that kind were as 
frequent around our campfires in front of Petersburg 
in the fall of 1864, as they were in any ward meeting 
or country store in the North. 

Thanksgiving Day, November 24, 1864, will long 
be remembered by the soldiers of the various Union 
armies, when instead of the usual dinner of pork and 
beans, hard tack, etc., they were, thanks to the loyal 
ladies of the North, treated to a genuine Thanks- 
giving dinner of roast turkey and other good things. 
Communication by steamer with the Army of the 
Potomac was handy to all the principal ports in the 
North, and for several days the wharves at City Point 
on the James river were piled with boxes and pack- 
ages containing good things for the "boys" at the 
front. There was more than enough and all was in 
good condition. Some of the boxes contained the 
names of the fair donors, with the request that the 
parties receiving the same should acknowledge the 
receipt thereof. This in many instances led to a cor- 
respondence between the parties which ended in mar- 
riage, and the unions thus formed proved to be happy 
ones as far as the 57th boys were concerned. 

During the month of November the terms of ser- 
vice of many of our officers expired, and they were 
accordingly mustered out of the service. Among 
these were Lieut. Col. W. B. Neeper, Capt. A. H. 



134 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

Nelson, Capt. Sprague Hill, Capt. H. H. Nelson and 
First Lieut. A. B. McCartney.* 

Dr. John W. Lyman, a resident of Lock Haven, 
Pa., who was appointed surgeon of the 57th when 
the regiment was orgonized in 1861, and had been 
with it constantly, resigned September 16, 1864, in 
order to accept the lieutenant-colonelcy of the 203d 
Pennsylvania volunteers. While serving with that 
regiment he was killed in the attack on Fort Fisher, 
North Carolina, January 15, 1865. Dr. Lyman was 
an excellent surgeon, kind and genial, and had en- 
deared himself in the hearts of the men of the 57th, 
who were deeply grieved when they learned of his 
death. 

Col. John W. Moore, of the 203d, had long been 
connected with our division, having entered the ser- 
vice as captain in the 99th Pennsylvania. As captain 
and major he had served on the staffs of Generals 
Kearny and Birney, and was an accomplished soldier. 
He met his death in the same action, with Dr. Lyman. 

The 2d corps moved from its camp near Fort 
Hell and Fort Hays on November 30th, and took up 
a position farther to the left on the Peebles farm, 
between Forts Sybert and Emory. Our old camping 
grounds were now occupied by the 9th army corps. 

On the morning of the 7th of December the regi- 
ment again broke camp to 1 take part in the expedition 
to destroy the Weldon railroad. The road had been 
destroyed, during the summer and fall, as far south as 

*A complete roster of the officers of the resriment, with the manner in 
which they quit the service, etc., will be found in the Appendix, marked A. 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 1 35 

Stony creek, some twenty miles south of Petersburg. 
As the enemy was still using the road and hauling 
provisions, etc., by wagon from Stony creek to Peters- 
burg, General Grant determined to have the road de- 
stroyed as far south as possible. 

For this purpose an expedition was sent out under 
General Warren, consisting of his own, the 5th corps, 
Mott's division of the 2d corps, and Gen. D. M. 
Gregg's cavalry, in all a force of about twenty thou- 
sand men. Our division (Mott's) broke camp at day- 
light on December 7th and marched via the Globe 
tavern and Gurly house to the Jerusalem plank, and 
following the 5th corps on this road, we arrived at 
the Nottoway river about dark, after a march of 
twenty miles. We crossed the river the same evening 
and bivouacked for the night. We resumed our march 
at daylight on the 8th, passing through Sussex Court 
House, and halted for the night about three miles 
from Jarrett's station on the Weldon railroad. 

Early on the morning of the 9th, the work of 
destroying the railroad commenced. A brigade would 
stack arms near the road, then each man taking hold 
of the end of a tie, the road would be turned over as 
a plow turns over a furrow. Then axes were used to 
loosen the rails from the ties; the latter were placed 
in piles and the rails put on top. Then dry wood, 
from the fences nearby, was added and the piles set 
on fire. The rails becoming red hot in the middle 
would bend in a semicircular form from their own 
weight, which rendered them useless for relaying. 
Oft times the men would take a rail from the fire and 



136 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

twist it around a tree, which of course could not be 
removed without cutting down the tree. Travelers in 
that section often noticed these rails around the trees 
long after the close of the war. 

We worked at tearing up the road until 4 o'clock 
p. m., when we were ordered to encamp. Two hours 
later our brigade, in light marching order, was sent 
to within one mile of Belfield on the Meherrin river. 
Here we again began to destroy the railroad, back in 
the direction in which we came. Belfield is about ten 
miles from the North Carolina line, and is the further- 
most point south ever reached by the regiment. This 
march of about five miles was made in rain and sleet, 
with the weather rapidly growing colder. It began to 
snow during the night, and in the morning every tree, 
twig and shrub was covered with ice. 

On Saturday, December 10th, we started on our 
return march. The roads were in a terrible condi- 
tion, which made the march very fatiguing, especially 
to the new recruits, of which there were many in 
every regiment. Crawford's and Ayer's divisions had 
some skirmishing to do while we moved to the rear, 
but on our part we were not molested and reached 
the vicinity of our old camps about 2 o'clock p. m. on 
December 12th. We laid out a new camp in front of 
the rear line of entrenchments, west of the Halifax 
road, where we remained until the 5th of February. 

It was reported that many of our soldiers who had 
straggled from their regiments during our advance in 
the Weldon raid, were found during our retreat, 
lying in the woods, killed by rebel guerrilas, some 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 1 37 

with their throats cut. Be this as it may, it is certain 
that many of these stragglers never returned to their 
regiments. Many of the houses that stood near the 
road were burned on our return march in retaliation 
for the murder of our men. 

On account of the abundance of the liquor called 
applejack the Weldon raid was generally spoken of 
by the men as the "applejack raid." As our division 
had the rear of the column in the advance we did 
not get hold of much of the liquor. There is no doubt 
that many of the men who straggled had tasted too 
much of the fiery stuff and became too tired to march, 
and lay down to rest. In the 57th we had some who 
had taken "as much as was good for them," and they 
became rather hilarious, but none of them straggled 
from the ranks. 

General Hancock bade farewell to the 2d corps on 
November 26th. He had been appointed to raise and 
organize a new corps, to consist of veterans, and of 
which he was to have command. He was succeeded 
in command of the 2d corps by Gen. A. A. Humph- 
reys, an able general, who for a long time had been 
chief of staff to General Meade. 



10 



138 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 



CHAPTER XII. 

BY E. C. STROUSS. 

Disbanding of Companies A and E — Regiment Organized 
Into a Battalion of Six Companies — Consolidation of the 
Eighty-Fourth with the Fifty-Seventh Pennsylvania — 
Necessity for Changing the Letter of Some of the Com- 
panies — Confusion in Company Rolls Growing Out of It — 
Officers of the Consolidated Regiment — Another Move 
Across Hatcher's Run — The Regiment Again Engaged 
with the Enemy — 'Great Length of the Line in Front of 
Petersburg — A Lively Picket Skirmish — Battle Near 
Watkin's House — Enemy's Picket Line and Many Pris- 
oners Captured. 

The arduous campaign of 1864, with its numerous 
terrific battles, had greatly reduced the strength of 
all the old regiments that went out in 1861. These, 
together with the men who had not reenlisted — some 
seventy-five in number — had so thinned the ranks of 
the 57th that two of its companies were ordered to be 
disbanded and the men to be assigned to other com- 
panies. The following is a copy of the order which 
brought about this state of affairs : 

Headquarters 57th P. V. V. | 
January 11, 1865. j 

Special Orders No. 3. 

I. As directed by S. O. No. 8, War Dept. A. G. O., Jan. 6th, 
'65, this regiment will be consolidated into a battalion to consist 
of six companies of equal strength. 

II. Companies A and E will be broken up, and distributed 
with the six companies thus formed, so as to equalize them in 
strength. 

Supernumerary non-commissioned officers to be mustered out 
under the supervision of the division mustering officer. 

By command of Lieut. -Col. L. D. Bumpus. 
Attest: R. I. Campbell, Lieut, and Actg. Adjt. 




.Military services of LORENZO D. BUMPUS, of Pennsylvania, in 

U. S. Volunteers. 

Born at Titusville, Pa., .March 15, 1844; received a common school 
education; enlisted October 2, 1861, as a private in Company I, 57th Penn- 
sylvania Volunteers; appointed Second Sergeant Nov. 16, 1861; acted as 
First Sergeant during the IVninsula campaign; commissioned First Lieu- 
tenant August 10, 1862; Captain March 11'. 1863; Lieutenant-Colonel Novem- 
ber 5, 1864; mustered out as supernumerary January 19. 1865, upon the 
consolidation of the 84th Pennsylvania Volunteers with the 57th, 

He took part in all the battles of the 57th regiment until his muster 
out, and was never absent or off duty but for a short time in 1864, when in 
Second Corps Field Hospital at City Point, Va., with broken leg and dis- 
located hip. He is still here and is keeping step to the music of the Union, 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 1 39 

Under the same order from the War Department 
the 84th Pennsylvania volunteers, which consisted of 
ten small companies, was consolidated into four, and 
these were then joined to our regiment, making a 
new organization to be designated the "57th Regi- 
ment, Pennsylvania Veteran Volunteers." In order to 
avoid having two companies of the same letter, it 
became necessary to change the letter of three of the 
companies of the old 57th, viz : Company H was 
changed to Company A, I to D, and K to E. With 
but few exceptions, the companies whose letters were 
changed retained the same officers and noncommis- 
sioned officers, and their organizations remained the 
same. Companies B, C, and F retained their old 
letters. The four companies of the old 84th formed 
the left of the regiment and were lettered G, H, I 
and K. 

The order for consolidation was received with con- 
siderable dissatisfaction by both officers and men. 
The 84th, like the 57th, was an old regiment, and had 
served faithfully and gallantly since the spring of 
1862, and each had an honorable record. The 84th 
had seen its first fighting at Winchester, Va., on 
March 23, 1862, and then in Bank's campaign in the 
Shenandoah valley, Pope's campaign, and had joined 
the 3d corps of the Army of the Potomac in Sep- 
tember, 1862. It was assigned to Birney's division 
of the 2d corps in May and remained in the division 
until the close of the war. It was a great injustice 
to break up a regiment with such an honorable record 
and deprive it of its number. 



140 HISTOE.Y FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

In the fall of 1864 the State of Pennsylvania sent 
to the front a dozen or more new regiments to serve 
for one year. These men should have been sent to 
the old regiments already in the field, who had upheld 
their country's honor in many a bloody battle, and 
who were proud of their official distinction. 

One of the evil results of all this consolidation, 
changing of regimental numbers, and company letters, 
can be seen in a work published by the State of Penn- 
sylvania, after the war, entitled " Bates' History of 
Pennsylvania Volunteers." The names of many 
worthy soldiers, some of whom died for their country, 
are omitted on the rolls as published in the work above 
mentioned. It was not the fault, however, of Dr. S. 
P. Bates and his assistants, for the rolls at Harris- 
burg, from which they procured their information, 
were very incomplete. This is particularly so as re- 
gards the 57th Pennsylvania. When the muster-out 
rolls of the regiment were prepared in June, 1865, the 
company commanders were required to make out two 
rolls, each to contain the name of every man, living 
or dead, who had ever belonged to the company, and 
the manner in which he left the service to be stated. 
These rolls never reached Harrisburg, but remained 
at Washington, D. C. The writer is informed that 
Dr. Bates tried to have access to these rolls for pre- 
paring his history, but was refused the privilege of 
using them by the authorities at Washington. 

While fortune had thrown together the 57th and 
84th Pennsylvania, they served side by side in per- 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 141 

feet concord and amity, no quarrelling between them 
ever manifesting itself. 

At the time of the consolidation and for some 
months previous, Lieut. Col. L. D. Bumpus was in 
command of the regiment. He was then honorably 
discharged and mustered out. He entered the service, 
a mere boy of 17, as a private in Company I of the 
57th, and for meritorious conduct was successively 
promoted to sergeant, first sergeant, first lieutenant, 
captain and lieutenant colonel. He was a brave soldier 
and was always with his men whether in the camp 
or in front of the enemy. 

The officers of the new organization were as 
follows : 

Colonel — George Zinn. 

Lieutenant-Colonel — George W. Perkins. 

Major — Samuel Bryan. 

Adjutant — Thomas E. Merchant. 

Quartermaster — John W. Parks. 

Surgeon — H. G. Chritzman. 

Assistant Surgeon — J. K. Cassell. 

Chaplain — William T. McAdam. 

Company A, Capt. D. W. Gore. 

Company B, First Lieut. Daniel Comstock. 

Company C, Capt. M. W. Houser. 

Company D, Capt. J. D. Moore. 

Company E, Capt. E. C. Strouss. 

Company F, Capt. E. C. Bierce. 

Company G, First Lieut. David Larrish. 

Company H, Second Lieut. William A. Wilson. 

Company I, Capt. John R. Ross. 



142 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

Company K, Capt. R. C. Lamberton. 

The non-commissioned staff were : 

Sergeant Major — William McCaslin. 

Quartermaster Sergeant — John H. Rodgers. 

Commissary Sergeant — Charles Coburn. 

Hospital Steward — Cary A. Slayton. 

Principal Musician — Daniel Fisher. 

Drum Major — J. N. McDonald. 

Our new colonel, George Zinn, of Harrisburg, was 
a man of undoubted courage and a strict disciplin- 
arian. He was absent at the time of the consolidation 
on account of severe wounds received in action while 
in command of the 84th. He returned for duty and 
took command of the regiment on March 18. 

Lieut.-Col. George W. Perkins, of Bradford 
county, Pa., entered the service as a sergeant of Com- 
pany H, 57th, in 186 1. He was for a time adjutant 
of the regiment, and was then promoted as captain 
of Company B. For some time previous to his pro- 
motion to lieutenant-colonel he had served on the 
staff of General Mott, our division commander. 

Maj. Samuel Bryan, of Lycoming county, Pa., 
entered the service as first lieutenant of Company B, 
84th Pennsylvania, in 1861. He was not much of a 
tactician, but as brave as a lion, and if there was a 
chance to get up a row with the enemy's pickets, while 
he had charge of a detail, he was sure to do it. His 
"staying qualities" in a fight endeared him to all the 
men, to whom he was always kind and fatherly. 

On February 5th another move was made for the 
purpose of extending our lines to the left. At 7 a. m., 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 143 

with the division, we broke camp and marched to the 
Vaughn road crossing of Hatcher's run. Skirmishers 
from our ist brigade and the cavalry having effected 
the crossing, our brigade — temporarily commanded by 
Colonel West, of the 17th Maine — crossed over and 
began to throw up a slight breastwork, forming the 
arc of a circle, the right of the ist, and the left of the 
2d brigade resting on the run. Our brigade (the 2d) 
remained in this position till about 5 p. m., when it 
was hurriedly moved to the right to support McAllis- 
ter (3d brigade), who was being fiercely attacked by 
the enemy on the north side of the run. We started 
off on the double quick for a mile or more — the 57th 
leading — and reaching McAllister's position the 57th 
Pennsylvania and the 5th Michigan formed line on 
his left and charged the enemy, who would have 
driven back McAllister without our assistance. Com- 
pany E, of the 57th, was not with the regiment in 
this fight, having been sent on picket duty before the 
brigade was ordered to the right. The regiment had 
two men wounded in this affair. The rest of the 
fighting during this expedition was confined to the 
5th corps and the cavalry, who were on our left. 

The 7th was a very disagreeable day, as it began 
to snow and continued to do so all day. On the 9th 
we were supplied with axes and began to slash the 
timber in front of our new line of works. 

Our army now held a line extending from Arm- 
strong's mill on Hatcher's run on the left to the Appo- 
mattox river below Petersburg on the right, a dis- 
tance of about sixteen miles. This line with the 



144 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

natural and artificial obstructions in its front, was 
almost impregnable, and could be held by a small por- 
tion of our troops, leaving the main body of our army 
free for operations elsewhere. 

On March ioth the regiment proceeded to lay out 
a new camp, which proved to be the last one among 
the many we occupied along the Petersburg lines. 
jFrom this time until March 25th we lay quiet in our 
camp with the exceptions of drill, camp and picket 
duty. 

A heavy detail for picket duty in our front was 
sent out on the morning of March 24th. It was a 
beautiful spring day and everything remained quiet 
along our part of the line, until an hour or so before 
daylight on the 25th, when a prolonged and heavy 
artillery fire was heard far away on our right. About 
7 a. m. a staff officer of our division rode out to our 
picket line, with orders to advance our line and feel 
of the enemy. After crossing a narrow swamp in our 
front we advanced through the woods and were soon 
exchanging shots with the enemy's pickets. We were 
ordered to cease advancing, so we remained quiet until 
the relief came out and took our places at 9 o'clock. 
During our advance Lieut. R. I. Campbell, of Com- 
pany C, and several of our men, were slightly 
wounded. 

On our arrival in camp we learned that the heavy 
artillery fire on our right which we heard in the 
morning, was caused by an attack on our lines by the 
enemy, under Gen. J. B. Gordon, at Fort Steadman. 
The enemy was temporarily successful, but were 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. I45 

finally driven back with heavy loss by the 9th corps 
under General Parke. Many of the enemy were killed 
and wounded in trying to get back to their own lines ; 
1,949 prisoners, including 71 officers and nine stands 
of colors, fell into General Parke's hands. 

About 3 p. m. of the same day our whole division 
was sent to the front for the purpose of driving 
back the enemy's picket line near the Watkins house. 
Arriving near the ground to be contested, General 
Pierce placed Colonel Pulford, of the 5th Michigan, 
in charge of the right wing near the Watkins house, 
and Colonel Zinn of the left wing, consisting of the 
57th, 105th and 141st Pennsylvania. As soon as 
Colonel Zinn's line was formed, he sent out details 
from each regiment to connect the enemy's rifle-pits 
which had been captured in the morning. While 
these details were at work, a brigade of rebels charged 
them and drove them back to the main line. Colonel 
Zinn at once ordered a countercharge of the regiments 
under his command, when they went forward with a 
cheer, and retook the pits and captured six commis- 
sioned officers and 167 enlisted men. In this charge 
Corporal Wolford Case, of Company E, 57th, ordered 
a rebel lieutenant to give up his sword. The rebel 
refused to do so at first, but, on seeing the state of 
affairs, yielded without further comment. 

Our regiment lost in this engagement 1 officer 
and 5 men wounded. The brigade loss was 4 enlisted 
men killed and 1 officer and 29 men wounded. 

Gen. A. A. Humphreys, in his book entitled "The 
Virginia Campaign of 1864-5," sa y s °f tms en g" a g e - 



146 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

ment : "It was this capture of the entrenched picket 
line of the enemy that made it practicable for General 
Wright to carry the enemy's main line of entrench- 
ments by assault on the morning of the 2d of April." 

We remained on the ground wrested from the 
enemy until after dark, when other troops relieved us 
and we returned to our camps. 

On the morning of the 27th the whole regiment 
was ordered once more to the front to support the 
picket line, some distance to the left of the point where 
we were engaged on the 25th. We threw up a strong 
breastwork of logs and earth, which we held until 
dark, when without difficulty we advanced our line 
to within one hundred yards of the enemy's pickets. 
On our return to camp next day we found that the 
whole division was under orders to move at 6 o'clock 
the next morning. 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. I47 



CHAPTER XIII. 

BY E. C. STROUSS. 

Beginning of Our Last Campaign — Battle of Five Forks — 
On Picket Duty on Old Hatcher's Run Battlefield — Jubi- 
lant Rebels — Enemy's Lines Broken — Petersburg and 
Richmond Evacuated — In Pursuit of the Enemy — Battle 
of Sailor's Creek — High Bridge — -General Mott Wounded — 
Lee's Army Breaking Up — Appomattox — Joy Over the 
Surrender — On the Backward March — Camp at Burkes- 
ville Junction. 

Before daylight on the morning of March 29th 
our men were astir geting their breakfasts, packing 
up, and preparing for the march, which was to ter- 
minate in the surrender of our old antagonists, the 
Army of Northern Virginia, ten days later. 

We moved out by the Vaughn road, across 
Hatcher's run, our corps resting its right on the run, 
and its left in communication with the 5th corps. 
General Ord's troops of the Army of the James occu- 
pied the entrenchments vacated by our corps. We 
moved out toward the enemy; but in that country of 
woods and swamps it took nearly the whole day to 
rectify the line and get into position. It rained 
heavily all night of the 29th and all the next day, 
rendering the roads impassable for artillery and 
wagons until corduroyed. On the 30th our corps con- 
tinued its advance, driving the enemy inside his 
entrenchments along Hatcher's run from the Crow- 
house to the Boydton road, pressing close up against 
them, but not assaulting. 



I48 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

On the 31st the 5th corps under General Warren 
on our left was more or less engaged with the enemy 
with varying success. Our first division under Gen- 
eral Miles, which joined Warren's right, engaged 
the enemy in a brisk fight, drove them back and re- 
lieved the pressure on Warren. Our division made 
an attempt to attack the enemy's entrenchments at 
the Boydton road crossing of Hatcher's run, but the 
works were found to be too strong, so the attack was 
countermanded. 

Late in the afternoon of April 1st General War- 
ren, assisted by Sheridan's cavalry, succeeded in car- 
rying the enemy's strong position at Five Forks, 
about five miles to our left. The enemy under Gen- 
eral Pickett had 4,500 prisoners, 13 colors and 6 guns 
captured. 

During the afternoon of this day the regiment 
with the brigade was posted in the same field in which 
we had fought the enemy on the 27th of October 
previous. 

Just before dark a heavy detail of the 57th in 
charge of Captains Strouss and Moore and First 
Lieut. R. I. Campbell was sent to the front instructed 
to guard carefully against a night attack from the 
enemy. Only a short distance in our front were the 
rebel pickets. They yelled at us : "Yanks, do you 
know that General Sheridan is killed?" They were 
answered : "You lie, you greybacks, you haven't lead 
enough to kill him." They had no doubt been told 
that we had lost the battle at Five Forks, and that 
Sheridan had been killed. At least they were very 






PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 149 

hilarious during the fore part of the night. They 
also yelled to us asking : "Yanks, have you got any 
whiskey over thar?" Being answered in the nega- 
tive, they yelled : "We have lots of it over har ; 
come over and get some." They evidently had 
plenty of whiskey or applejack, as some of those we 
"gobbled" next morning were very weak in the legs. 

On our side we were busy strengthening our picket 
pits, hurrying to get the work finished before the rise 
of the moon. During the latter part of the night there 
was more or less picket-firing along the lines, which 
we kept up until daylight, when they also opened on 
us with several pieces of artillery in a redoubt close 
by. One of their shells struck a large pine tree near 
which Captain Moore was standing, and exploding, 
threw a large piece of wood against him, injuring 
him painfully. 

Long before daylight on the 2d began the terrible 
cannonade which preceded the attack of the 6th and 
9th corps on the rebel works near Petersburg. This 
was miles away on our right, but the sound of the 
cannon and the reverberation through the woods, to- 
gether with our anxiety as to how the battle would 
end, put us on an awful strain. Tn a few hours, how- 
ever, we learned that our troops had been victorious 
and had broken and held the rebel lines in several 
places, and also that Gen. A. P. Hill, one of Lee's 
corps commanders, had been killed. On our part of 
the line we captured about one hundred of the enemy, 
also the cannon in the redoubt in our front. 

About 8 o'clock our corps took up the line of 



150 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

march via the Boydton plank road, to near Peters- 
burg. Here we formed line, about noon, parallel with 
the Appomattox river, the right of our line joining 
the left of the 6th corps. Here we were considerably 
annoyed by a battery of the enemy on the opposite 
side of the river, until some of our sharpshooters 
drove the cannoneers away from their guns. 

Later in the day we took up a new line near a 
large brick house which the day before had been the 
rebel General Mahone's headquarters. 

A little before dark the enemy from one of their 
forts opened on us with artillery, but did little dam- 
age, as we were sheltered by the brow of a hill and 
most of their shots passed over us. An officer of our 
division, while standing by a pump near the brick 
house mentioned above, was killed by a cannon ball 
which passed through the pump. Several men of the 
57th who had gone to a spring in rear of our line for 
water were also injured by fragments of shell. 

The enemy evacuated Petersburg and Richmond 
during the night of the 2d and morning of the 3d. 
Lee's army moved westward with the expectation of 
reaching Lynchburg or Danville, Va. 

Our corps took up the line of march in pursuit 
of the enemy about 8 o'clock a. m. on the 3d. We 
marched about twenty miles this day without any 
fighting, although some of our infantry and cavalry 
had some brisk skirmishes with the enemy's rear 
guard. 

On the 4th we only marched about eight miles, 
but spent most of the day in repairing bridges the 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 151 

enemy had destroyed and mending the roads, which 
recent rains had put in very bad order. Our corps 
and the 6th were on what was known as the River 
road; the 5th corps and the main body of the cavalry 
were on a road further south, and Ord's army and 
the 9th corps were following the line of the South 
Side railroad. 

By the evening of the 5th nearly all of Lee's army 
was at Amelia Court House. Lee had expected to 
find rations here for his army, which were ordered to 
be left there on the 2d. But the authorities at Rich- 
mond, anxious to get away, ordered the trains to go 
through to that place, where the rations were dumped 
out, the cars loaded with the heads of the various 
departments and their archives, and started south 
again, the occupants being in great dread of capture 
by the Yankees. The consequence was that Lee's 
army had to go hungry, as but little to eat was to 
be found in the country through which they were 
marching. 

The 5th corps had reached Jetersville — a station 
on the South Side railroad — late in the afternoon of 
the 5th and began to entrench as they were in front 
and across the path of the rebel army, only five miles 
distant. Our corps joined the 5th corps about dark 
and the 6th corps a few hours later. 

On the morning of the 6th the three corps ad- 
vanced toward Amelia Court House, but it was soon 
found that Lee had during the night slipped around 
our left flank, or, in other words, passed to the north 
of us and continued his retreat. He was closely fol- 



152 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

lowed and there was some hot fighting during the 
day. Our brigade's first encounter was on the after- 
noon of the 6th at a place called Amelia Springs, 
about four miles from Jetersville. We drove the 
enemy and captured some prisoners. The road we 
followed on this day was strewn for miles with tents, 
camp equipage, baggage, documents, etc., which the 
enemy threw from their wagons to 1 enable the half- 
starved mules to pull them through. Our brigade 
had frequent skirmishes with the enemy's rear guard 
until near dark, when we struck them at Sailor creek 
at Perkinson's mill, a few miles from where the creek 
empties into the Appomattox. Here, assisted by a 
portion of Miles' division, we succeeded in capturing 
several hundred prisoners, thirteen flags, and three 
guns, and a large part of the main trains of Lee's 
army, which were huddled together in a confused 
mass at the bridge crossing the creek. Our regiment 
and the 17th Maine dashed through the train and 
pursued the enemy across the creek, but both regi- 
ments were recalled after dark. In this engage- 
ment the regiment had none killed, and but seven men 
wounded. Among the wounded was Lieutenant- 
Colonel Perkins. Our division commander, General 
Mott, was wounded during the day's fighting. 

On the same day, further to our left, or up the 
creek, the 6th corps and Sheridan's cavalry had a 
battle with the enemy in which the latter met with 
severe losses. 

General Humphreys, in his book before quoted, 
says: "The total loss to Lee's army today (the 6th) 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 1 53 

in its actions with the 6th corps and the cavalry, and 
with the 2d corps, was not less than eight thousand 
men." 

Among the prisoners were Generals Ewell, Ker- 
shaw, Custis Lee, and Dubose of Ewell's command, 
and Generals Hunton and Corse, of Pickett's division. 

The 2d corps resumed the pursuit at half past five 
o'clock in the morning of the 7th, keeping near to the 
river and taking the routes which appeared to have 
been marched on by the largest bodies of infantry, 
and came upon High Bridge just as the enemy had 
blown up the redoubt that formed the bridge-head and 
had set fire to the railroad bridge, and were trying 
to burn the wagon road bridge. The railroad bridge 
was called High Bridge because built on piers about 
sixty feet high, across the narrow river and the wide 
marshy low ground on the north bank. This bridge 
was saved with the loss of four spans at the north 
end, chiefly by the exertions of Colonel Livermore, of 
General Humphreys' staff, whose party put out the 
fire, while the enemy's skirmsihers were fighting under 
their feet. It was a wooden, open deck bridge. The 
wagon road bridge which the emeny tried to burn 
but failed, was still smoking as we crossed it. Sixteen 
pieces of artillery which were in the redoubts at either 
end of the railroad bridge fell into our hands. 

The divisions of Miles and De Trobriand (the 
latter now commanding Mott's division) arrived at 
the Lynchburg stage road about 1 p. m., when we 
suddenly came in contact with the enemy, who opened 
on us with a heavy fire of artillery. Dispositions were 



154 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

at once made for an attack, and a heavy skirmish line 
was pressed close up against the enemv to develop 
their strength. From prisoners taken it was found 
that Lee's whole army was present in strong position 
covering the stage and plank roads to Lynchburg, 
which was entrenched sufficiently for cover, and had 
artillery in place. 

General Humphreys pressed against the rebel 
positions with his two divisions, but found the enemy 
too strong to be dislodged with the forces then under 
him. General Meade was notified of the state of 
affairs, when it was found that no pontoon bridge was 
available at Farmville, that the river was too deep for 
fording, and that it would be night before a bridge 
could be built to enable the force on our left to come 
to our assistance. So all we could do was to lie still 
and watch the enemy. 

By detention until night at this place, General Lee 
lost invaluable time, which he could not regain by 
night marching, lost the supplies awaiting him at 
Appomattox station, and gave time to Sheridan and 
his cavalry, and General Ord with the 5th and 24th 
corps to post themselves across his path at Appo- 
mattox Court House. 

Lee continued his retreat some time during the 
night, and the 2d corps started after him at 5 130 on 
the morning of the 8th. There was some skirmish- 
ing during the day, but no hard fighting. The enemy 
was anxious to get away, and thousands of their 
stragglers and deserters lined the roads. Our regi- 
ment acted as flankers to the main column on the 8th, 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 1 55 

moving on the left of it, about a quarter of a mile 
distant. 

Correspondence pertaining to the surrender of the 
rebel army was already passing between Grant and 
Lee; but of this we knew nothing at the time. 

On the morning of the 9th we moved a few miles 
and then halted for several hours and then moved on 
a short distance and halted within a few rods of 
where General Meade had his headquarters, about 
noon. About 3 o'clock in the afternoon an ambu- 
lance bearing a flag of truce and in which were seated 
some rebel officers, coming from the front, drove 
up to General Meade's headquarters. The ambulance 
soon returned accompanied by General Meade and his 
chief of staff, General Webb. They had been at the 
front but a short time when we heard great cheering 
in that direction, and also heard the music of the bands 
playing patriotic airs. The cheering came nearer and 
nearer, and our men began to line both sides of the 
road, when soon we saw the forms of Generals Meade 
and Webb approaching, their horses at an easy gal- 
lop. General Webb was riding ahead and shouting to 
the men: "Boys, your fighting is over; General Lee 
has surrendered." General Meade, who had been sick 
for several days, was waving his cap, but was so 
exhausted that he was scarcely able to dismount. 

Then for a while it seemed as if our army had 
suddenly become insane with joy. Men pushed each 
other over, mounted a stump or fence and crowed like 
roosters, laughed or wept for joy. It was hard to 
realize that the men whom we had been fighting for 



I56 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

nearly four years were no longer our foes, and that 
the weary nights on picket duty in storm and rain 
were ended. 

According to the records of the War Department 
the number of officers and enlisted men of Lee's army 
paroled on the 9th of April, 1865, was: Officers, 
2,862; enlisted men, 25,494; total, 28,356. Of the 
troops surrendered only 8,000 were armed. 

When the surrender took place our corps was near 
Clover Hill, about three miles from Appomattox 
Court House. It remained there on the 10th and on 
the nth we moved to the rear and bivouacked for 
the night at a place called New Store. Moving on 
the next day over very muddy roads and in the rain, 
we halted for the night at Farmville. On the 13th, 
after a hard march, we arrived at Burkesville Junc- 
tion, where we went into camp and remained there 
until May 2d. While at this place we heard the sad 
news that President Lincoln had been assassinated at 
Ford's Theater in Washington on the night of 
April 14th. 

On the 28th we had the joyful news that the rebel 
army under General Johnson had surrendered to Gen. 
W. T. Sherman. The most doubtful now knew that 
the war was over. 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 1 57 



CHAPTER XIV. 

BY E. C. STROUSS. 

Departure from Burkesville — Marching Through Richmond — 
The March to Washington — Passing Over Old Battle- 
fields — Camp at Bailey's Cross Roads — Grand Review 
of 'he Army of the Potomac — The Order of March — The 
Fifty-Seventh Ordered Mustered Out — 'Names of En- 
gagements in which the Regiment Participated — Its 
Casualties — We Start for Harrisburg — Finally Paid and 
Discharged — Farewell Address of Our Field Officers. 

The regiment with the corps received orders on 
May 2d to go to Richmond. It left its camp at 
Burkesville accordingly and marching via Amelia 
Court House, it reached Manchester on the James 
river, opposite Richmond, about 1 1 a. m. on May 5th. 
On the 6th it marched through Richmond with bands 
playing and colors flying, passing the famous — or 
infamous — Libby prison on the way. But few of the 
men who then marched with the regiment had ever 
been prisoners within its walls. Crossing the Chick- 
ahominy river the regiment bivouacked four and a 
half miles north of Richmond on the Fredericksburg 
pike. On the 7th it marched through Hanover Court 
House, and across the Pamunkey river, halting for 
the night after a march of sixteen miles. On the 8th 
it marched sixteen miles and on the 9th, seventeen 
miles, and halted for the night on the Po river, near 
the old battlefield of Spottsylvania. On the 10th it 
passed through Fredericksburg and crossing the Rap- 



158 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

pahannock, camped for the night on familiar ground 
near Stoneman's Switch on the Aquia Creek railroad. 

By the 15th the corps had reached the vicinity of 
Washington and went into camp near Bailey's Cross 
Roads. This proved to be the last camping ground 
of the regiment, it remaining here until the last of 
June. 

The only things of importance that occurred 
while in this camp were the Grand Review of the 
Army of the Potomac, on May 23d, and the muster- 
out of the regiment at the end of June. 

On the morning of May 23d we were up early, 
getting ready to march to Washington, distant seven 
miles, to take part in the Grand Review. We moved 
by way of Arlington Mills and Hunter's Chapel to 
Long Bridge, crossing which our corps (the 2d) was 
massed on the streets east and south of the Capitol. 
The Army of the Potomac (with the exception of 
the 6th corps, which was on duty at Danville, Va. ), 
was to pass in review before the President of the 
United States in the following order, with the officers 
named commanding : 

Cavalry Corps, Major General Merritt. 

Ninth Corps, Maj. Gen. John G. Parke. 

Fifth Corps, Maj. Gen. Charles Griffin. 

Second Corps, Maj. Gen. A. A. Humphreys. 

This force comprised 151 regiments of infantry, 
36 regiments of cavalry and 22 batteries of artillery, 
which, with the staff department of the general 
officers, made about 80,000 men. 

Precisely at 9 o'clock a. m. the signal gun boomed 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 1 59 

out the start. The cheery bugles of the cavalry and 
artillery were instantly going, the drums of the infan- 
try rolled, the bands pealed forth inspiring music, and 
the Grand Army of the Potomac was on the march. 

The infantry marched without knapsacks, by com- 
pany front, closed en masse. As the cavalry passed 
up Pennsylvania avenue, cheers rent the air, and 
horses and riders were pelted with flowers. Similar 
demonstrations awaited the other parts of the column. 

In front of the White House a large stand had 
been erected, on which stood the President, members 
of his cabinet, heads of the military and civil depart- 
ments, and foreign ambassadors. 

Thousands of people from the Northern states had 
visited Washington to see this the greatest military 
pageant of the nineteenth century, and which this 
country may never see surpassed. The streets were 
crowded to their utmost, and windows and roofs of 
houses and every available spot where the parade 
could be viewed was filled with spectators. 

It was late in the afternoon when the last regi- 
ment passed the reviewing stand. Our brigade was 
the next to the last in the column. It was commanded 
by Brig. Gen. Byron R. Pierce and marched in the 
following order: 

17th Maine, Col. C. P. Mattox. 
105th Pennsylvania, Maj. James Miller. 

5th Michigan, Lieut. Col. D. S. Root. 
93d New York, Lieut. Col. H. Gifford. 

141st Pennsylvania, Lieut. Col. J. H. Horton. 
1 st Massachusetts Heavy Artillery, Maj. Shatwell. 
57th Pennsylvania, Maj. Samuel Bryan. 



l6o HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

The weather throughout the day was delightful, 
and the men being in light marching order, were but 
little fatigued, although we had marched altogether 
about sixteen miles. 

The next day General Sherman's army was 
reviewed under like circumstances, the crowd being 
swelled by the presence of many officers and men of 
the Army of the Potomac, who were anxious to see 
the review of their gallant comrades of the western 
armies. 

The 6th corps of the Army of the Potomac, and 
all the artillery that had not previously been re- 
viewed, passed in review on the 8th of June. 

After the reviews were over the government began 
mustering out troops as fast as the necessary rolls 
could be made out, and transportation be secured to 
send the men home. 

On June 23d orders were received that the 57th 
was on the list of regiments to be mustered out. 
Then for a week there were busy times at the head- 
quarters of the various companies. Five large mus- 
ter-out rolls of each company had to be made out, a 
discharge paper for each man to be filled out, com- 
pany books balanced, and descriptive books verified 
up to date. 

At last, all the necessary requirements having been 
fulfilled, the regiment was mustered out of the United 
States service on the evening of June 29, 1865. 

According to the records of the War Department 
the regiment is credited with having participated in 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. l6l 

the following battles, viz : Yorktown, Williamsburg, 
Fair Oaks, Oak Grove, Glendale, Malvern Hill, Bris- 
tow Station, Groveton, Second Bull Run, Chantilly, 
Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville, Gettysburg, Auburn, 
Kelly's Ford, Mine Run, Wilderness, Spottsylvania, 
North Anna, Totopotomoy, Cool Harbor, Petersburg, 
Strawberry Plains, Deep Bottom, Poplar Grove 
Church, Boydton Road, Hatcher's Run, Petersburg 
(Watkins' House), Amelia Springs, Appomattox. 

The casualties of the regiment were: Killed, 161 ; 
wounded, 432; died of disease or wounds, 217; total, 
810. This total is almost as great as the original 
strength of the regiment, which was about 850 officers 
and men. 

The above does not include those who died in 
prison, as correct lists of these were never obtained. 

The total enlistment in the regiment was 1,711, 
but this includes the men who reenlisted, and over 100 
who enlisted for the regiment, but never reported for 
duty. The regiment also received 150 recruits after 
Lee had surrendered and the fighting was over. 

At the date of muster-out there were but 97 men 
of the original regiment left in the ranks. Chaplain 
W. T. McAdam was the only one of the original 
officers remaining. 

On the morning of June 30th we struck tents for 
the last time, and then marched to Washington, where 
we took cars for Harrisburg. 

We arrived at the latter place on Sunday morning, 
July 2d, and marched out to what was called "Camp 
Return." adjoining "Old Camp Curtin." Here the 



1 62 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

regiment received its final pay and discharges from 
Maj. W. T. Asson, Paymaster U. S. A., on July 6th, 
1865. On the same day the men departed by various 
routes for their homes. 

Before disbanding each member of the regiment 
received a copy of the following farewell address, 
which was prepared by Adjutant Thomas E. Mer- 
chant, of the 57th: 

Harrisburg, Pa., July 6, 1865. 
To the Officers and Soldiers of the old 57th Pennsylvania: 

Four years ago our thoughts were turned on war to come. 

To-day our thoughts are on war past and peace to come. 

The bloody strife is over, and you with many of your fellow 
soldiers are now to return to your homes. 

We part joyfully, for the life we have led as soldiers has been 
a severe one, and we are glad the task is over, and that henceforth 
we may enjoy the comforts of peaceful life. Yet the associations 
we have formed are very hard to sever, and during our whole 
course of life in the future we will revert with pleasure and pride 
to the associations and companionships formed during those three 
or four years in which the regiment fought twenty-seven engage- 
ments and marched hundreds of miles. 

Let us not forget each other. Parting as a band of brothers, 
let us cling to the memory of those tattered banners, under which 
we fought together, and which without dishonor we just now re- 
stored to the authorities who placed them in our hands. 

Till we grow grey-headed and pass away let us sustain the 
reputation of the noble old regiment, — for none can point to one 
more glorious! 

Fortune threw together two organizations — the 84th P. V. and 
the 57th P. V. — to make up the present command. Both regi- 
ments have been in service since the beginning of the strife, and 
the records of both will demand respect through all coming time. 

Very many of those who have been enrolled with us have 
fallen, and their graves are scattered here and there throughout 
the south. 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 1 63 

We will not forget these; and the people of this nation will and 
must honor their memory— for how can they avoid it when they see 
little children pointing their fingers at the portrait on the wall and 
hear them saying: "He died for our country!" 
Comrades, God bless you all! Farewell! 

George Zinn, 
George W. Perkins, 
Samuel Bryan, 
Field officers of the late 57th P. V. V. 



164 



HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 



APPENDIX A. 



Roster of the Field, Staff and Line Officers of the 
Fifty-Seventh Regiment, Pennsylvania Veteran Vol- 
unteer Infantry, from date of organization, Decem- 
ber 14, 1861, to date of muster out, June 29, 1865. 

This roster is copied from the report of Gen. A. 
L. Russell, Adjutant General of the State of Penn- 
sylvania for the year 1866. 



RANK AND NAME. 



Col. William Maxwell •• 
" Chas. T. Campbell. 
" Peter Sides 



" Geo. Zinn 

Lt. Col. E.W.Woods- • •• 

" Peter Sides 

T. S. Stroecker • 

" Wm. B. Neeper 

" L. D. Bumpus •• 

Geo. W. Perkins 

Major Jeremiah Culp 

S. C. Simonton — 
Wm. B. Neeper.. ■ 

" Samuel Bryan 

Adjt. Wm. B. Neeper. — 

" Geo. W. Perkins — 

Clark M. Lyons..-.. 

Jas. D. Moore. 

" R. J. McQuillen 



COUNTY OR 
RESIDENCE. 



Mercer 

Franklin.. ••■ 
Philadelphia. 



Dauphin. 

Mercer 

Philadelphia.- 

Venango 

Allegheny- •• 

Venango 

Bradford 

Bradford 

Mercer 

Allegheny 

Lycoming 

Allegheny. .. 

Bradford 

Susquehanna. 

Mercer 

Mercer 



RANK 
FROM 



Aug. 24, 
Mar. 4, 
Mar. 12. 

Feb. 1, 
Aug. 24. 
Sept. 15. 
Mar. 12. 
Sept. 11. 
Nov. 5, 
Dec. 15. 
Aug. 24, 
June 1, 
Dec. 31, 
Jan. 6, 
Aug. 24, 
Sept. 27, 
Feb. 16, 
June 21. 
Nov. 5, 



REMARKS. 



Resigned March 10, 

1862. 
Promoted to Brig. 

Gen. Nov. 9, 1862. 
( Hon.dis.Nov.28, '64. 
■J Ap't'd Brevet Brig. 
( Gen. April 6, 1865. 
Mustered out withReg. 

June 29, 1865. 
Resigned September 

14, 1862. 
To Colonel. 

Hon. dis. March 12, 

1863, as Lt. Colonel. 
Hon. dis. November 

4, 1864. 
Mustered out Jan. 13, 

1865. 
Mustered out June 29. 

1865. 
Killed at Fair Oaks. 

Va., May 31,1862. 
Hon. dis. January 17. 

1863. 
To Lieut. Colonel. 

Mustered out June 29, 

1865. 
To Captain Company 

C. 
To Captain Company 

B. 
Died June 20, 1864, of 

w'nds rec' in notion. 
To Captain Company 

I. 
Commission withheld. 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 1 65 

Roster of Fifty-Seventh Pennsylvania Veteran Volunteers.— Continued, 



RANK AND NAME. 



COUNTY OR 
RESIDENCE. 



RANK 
FROM 



REMARKS. 



Adjt. Thos. E. Merchant... 

Qr. Mast. Horace Williston 

Israel Garretson. 

John H. Rodgcrs 

John W. Parke... 

Surgeon John W. Lyman. • . 

H. G. Chritzman... 

Asst. Surg. A. W. Fisher. . . . 

D. D. Kennedy 

J. Elliott Miller.... 
FredR. H. Leet... 

T. A. Downs 

J. K. Cassell 

Wm. Jack. 

Chaplain Wm. T. McAdam 
Company A. 

Capt. Peter Sides 

J. R. Lyons 

" H.H.Hinds 

1st Lieut. J. R. Lyons 

Edson J. Rice. 

H. H. Hinds 

2d Lieut. Edson J. Rice 

H. H. Hinds 

Jere. C. Green.. 

Geo. L. Amey 

Company B. 

Capt. S. C. Simonton 

J. W. Gillespie 

Geo. \V. Perkins 



Philadelphia.. 

Mercer 

Mercer 

Mercer 

Clinton 

Franklin 

Northumber- 
land 

Chester. 

Franklin 

Mercer 

Philadelphia ■ • 

Bucks 

Indiana 

Mercer 

Philadelphia. ■• 
Susquehanna. 
Susquehanna. 
Susquehanna. 

Wyoming: 

Susquehanna.. 

Wyoming 

Susquehanna.. 
Wyoming • • . 
Susquehanna.- 

Mercer 

Mercer 

Bradford 



April 5, 
Aug. 24, 
Aug. 15, 
Dec. 12, 
Nov. 1, 
Oct. 14, 
Oct. 24, 
Oct. 15, 
Aug. 1, 
Aug. 19, 
Jan. 13, 
Mar. 21, 
Sept. 17, 
Jan. 6, 
Aug. 24, 

Sept. 4, 
Sept. 15, 
Oct. 5. 
Sept. 4, 
Sept. 15, 
Jan. 7, 
Sept. 4. 
Sept. 15, 
Jan. 7, 
Mar. 1, 

Sept. 16, 
Oct. 1, 
Feb. 15, 



'65 Mustered out June 29, 

1865. 
'61 Resigned Aug. 7, 1862. 



Mustered out at ex. of 
term, Dec. 12,1864. 

Not mustered as Quar- 
ter Master. 

Must, out with reg. 
June 29, 1865. 

Must, out Sept. 14, '64, 
to be Lt. Col. 203d P. V. 

Must, out June 29, 1865. 

Resigned Aug. 9, 1862. 

To Surgeon 133d Pa. 

Volunteers. 
Resigned December 

20, 1862. 
Resigned 1863. 



Dis. for disability, 
Mar. 21, '64, to date. 

64 Mustered out June 29, 
1865. 

65 Must, out June 29, '65. 
I Tr. from 84th Pa. V. 

61 Mustered out June 29, 
1865. 



•61 



To Lieut. Colonel. 



'62 Hon. discharged Oct. 

I 4, 1864. 
'64 Hon. dis. as 1st Lieut. 

I May 15, 1865. 
'64 To Captain. 

'62 To Captain Co. E. 

'63,To Captain. 

'6LT0 1st Lieutenant. 

62 To 1st Lieutenant. 

'63 Killed in action May 

I 12, 1864. 
65 Mustered out June 29, 
1865. 



To Major. 



'62 Hon. discharged Oct. 

I 23, 1863. 
'64, To Lieut. Colonel. 



166 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

Roster of Fifty-Seventh Pennsylvania Veteran Volunteers.— Continued. 



RANK AND NAME. 



1st Lieut. Israel Garretson- • 
" T. O. Collamore..- 
" D. C. Comstock-.- 

2d Lieut. J. W. Gillespie 

" James Burns 

Wm. H.Bell. 

Company C. 

Capt. Jere B. Hoagland 

Wm. B. Neeper. 

" Sprague S. Hill 

" M. W. Houser 

1st Lieut. Enoch C. Cloud. ■ ■ 

Sprague S. Hill 

" A. B. McCartney •• 

Robt. I. Campbell. 

2d Lieut. Spragrue S. Hill . . . 

M.W. Houser. ••■ 

Geo. W. Miller 

Company D. 

Capt. H. W. Caulking. 

1st Lieut. Charles O. Etz--- 

Cyrus P. Slaven-- 

2d Lieut. W. O. Mattison... 

Joseph S. Sharp-. 

Company E. 

Capt. Jas. E. Moore 

" W. S. Eberman. 

" Edson J. Rice. 

Edgar Williams 

" John W.Parke. 



COUNTY OR 
RESIDENCE. 



Mercer- 



Allegheny • 
Mercer — 
Franklin. •• 
Mercer •••- 



Franklin.- 
Bradford- 



Tioga 

Tioga 

Crawford. 
Tioga 
Venango ■ 



RANK 
FROM 



REMARKS. 



Sept. 16, '61 
Oct. 1, '62 
Nov. 4, '64 
Sept. 16, '61 
Jan. 6, '63 
April 1, '65 



Oct. 1, 

June 1, 
Jan. 17, 
Nov. 14, 
Oct. 1, 
June 25, 
Jan. 17, 
Nov. 23, 
April 16, 
Jan. 6, 
Marchl, 



Allegheny 

Mercer 

Wyoming 

Susquehanna. 

Mercer May 13, '65 



Sept. 4, '6: 
Sept. 4, '61 
May 19, '65 
Sept. 4, '61 
May 19. '65 

Sept. 1, '61 
Oct. 16, '62 
Feb. 28, '63 
Nov. 1, '63 



To Quartermaster. 

Resigned May 31, 1863. 

Mustered out June 29, 

1865. 
To Captain. 

Hon. discharged Mar. 

17, 1865. 
Mustered out June 29, 

1865. 

Resigned June 5, 1862. 
To Major. 

Mustered out at ex. of 
term, Nov. 11,1864. 

Mustered out June 29, 
1865. 

Discharged June 25, 
1862. 

To Captain. 

Mustered out at ex. of 
term, Nov. 16, 1864. 

Mustered out June 29, 
1865. 

To 1st Lieutenant. 

To Captain. 

Mustered out June 29, 
1865. 

Resigned Aug. 2, 1862. 

Killed at Malvern Hill, 
Va., July 1, 1862. 

Mustered out June 29, 
1865. 

Resigned June 25, 1862. 

Must, out as 1st Serg. 
June 29, 1865. 

Resigned October 16, 
1865. 

Resigned January 17, 
1863. 

Killed at Chancellorsv 
Va., May 3, 1863. 

Died May 23, 1864, of 
wounds. 

Mustered out as Quar- 
termaster. 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 1 67 

Rosier of Fifty-Seventh Pennsylvania Veteran Volunteers.— Continued. 



RANK AND NAME. 



1st Lieut. Henry Mitchell. • • 
" Edgar Williams..- ■ 

John W. Parke. 

John A. Sillaman- • 

2d Lieut. W. S. Eberman- • • 

Henry Mitchell — 

" Edgar Williams..- • 

John A. Sillaman- • 

Joseph Freeman.- • 

Company F. 

Captain Ralph Maxwell 

" George Clark 

H. H. Nelson-. .. 

E. C. Bierce 

1st Lieut. Isaac Cummings. 

Wm. B. Neeper 

" George Clark 

H.H.Nelson 

James F. Ruger..-- 

2d Lieut. George Clark 

H.H.Nelson 

Lafayette Cameron 
Wm. H. H. Hurry. 

E. C. Bierce 

Company G. 

Captain Geo. S. Peck 

" Chas. W. Forrester 

1st Lieut. Daniel Mehan . . . 
James M. Darling. 
Joseph H. Moore- • 



COUNTY OR 
RESIDENCE. 



Allegheny... . ■ 
Susquehanna. 

Mercer 

Crawford.. — 

Mercer 

Allegheny 

Susquehanna. 
Crawford 



Mercer . 



Mercer 



Allegheny. 
Mercer — 



Bradford- 
Mercer • • • 



Bradford- 
Columbia. 

Bradford- 



Blair 



RANK 
FROM 



Jan. 24, 
Sept. 1. 
Nov. 1, 
April 18, 
Sept. 1, 
Oct. 16, 
Jan. 24, 
Mar. 1, 
April 18, 

Sept 16, 
Feb. 8, 
Dec. 18, 
Dec. 2, 
Sept. 16, 
Aug. 24, 
April 22, 
Feb. 8, 
Dec. 21, 
Sept. 16, 
April 22, 
Feb. 8, 
Dec. 21, 
Nov. 7, 

Sept. 4, 
April 5, 

Sept. 4, 
May 20, 
June 9, 



REMARKS. 



Killed at Gettysburg, 

July 2, 1863. 
To Captain. 

To Captain. 

Mustered out June 29, 

1865. 
To Captain. 

To 1st Lieutenant. 

To 1st Lieutenant. 

To 1st Lieutenant. 

Mustered out June 29, 
1865. 

Resigned Feb. 3, 1863. 
Resigned Dec. 17, 1863. 

Dis. at ex. of term of 
service, Nov. 1864. 

Mustered out June 29, 
1865. 

Resigned March 14, 
1862. 

To Adjutant. 

To Captain. 

To Captain. 

Mustered out June 29, 

1865. 
To 1st Lieutenant. 

To 1st Lieutenant. 

Discharged December 

20, 1863. 
.Mustered out June 29, 

1865. 
To Captain. 



Hon. dis. Sept. 23, '62. 
I Tr. Co. D, 84th P.V., 
I to Capt. & A.A.G. 3d 

1 Div. 2d Corps. 

I Must, out June 29, '65. 

To Captain Co. H. 

To Captain Co. H. 

Tr. from 84th Pa. V. 
Must, out June 29, '65. 



1 68 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

Roster of Fifty-Seventh Pennsylvania Veteran Volunteers.— Continued. 



RANK AND NAME. 



COUNTY OR 
RESIDENCE. 



RANK 
FROM 



REMARKS. 



2d Lieut. M ort. B . Owen ... 
" Pierce Russell.. — 
Company H. 

Capt. John Griffin. 

" Daniel Mehan 

James M. Darling: 

Daniel W. Gore. 

David Larish 

1st Lieut. Daniel Minier — 

Joseph Brady. 

Frank V. Shaw.... 

Wm. A. Wilson 

W. H. H. Hurst.... 
2d Lieut. Rich. Sinsabaugh. 
Geo. W. Perkins • 
R. S. Edmiston-. 
Daniel W. Gore... 
Jacob Weidensall. 
Company I. 

Capt. T. S. Strohecker 

" Lorenzo D. Bumpus. 

James D. Moore 

John R. Ross* 

1st Lieut. George Suplee. ■ 

" L. D. Bumpus 

" John Bowers 

James M. Lewis- • 
2d Lieut. J. R. Williams . • . 
E.S.Benedict.. 
John F. Cox.. 



Northampton. 
Bradford 



Sullivan .. 
Bradford. 



Mifflin 

Cumberland. 
Bradford — 



Blair 



Venango • 



Mercer • 
Wayne. 



Venango — 

Mercer 

Philadelphia. 
Mercer 



Mercer ■ 



Sept. 4, '61 
June 9, '65 



Sept. 17, '61 



Resigned October 16, 

1862. 
Tr. from 84th Pa. V. 

Must, out June 29, '65. 



Resigned May 7, 1862. 



May 20, 
Jan. 24, 
Nov. 8, 
June 9, 
Sept. 17, 
Sept. 27, 
Sept. 1. 
April 7, 



•G2 
'(53 
•64 
'65 
'61 
•62 
'63 
'65 

June 9, '65 
Sept. 17, '61 
Aug. 13, '62 
Sept. 27, '62 
Sept. 7, '63 
April 7, '65 



Resigned December 

31, 1862. 
Dis. as of Company 

A, June 16, 1864. 
Must out with Co. A, 

June 29, 1865. 
Tr. to and must, out 

Co. G, June 29, 1865. 
Dis. May 9, '62. Dis. 

removed Apr. 18, '63. 
Killed at Chancellors- 

ville. May 3, 1863. 
Must, out with Co. A. 

June 29, 1865. 
Hon. dis. June 1, 1865. 

Must, out Co. K, June 

29, '65, as 2d Lieut. 
Resigned Aug. 8, 1862. 

To Adjutant. 

Honorably discharged 

June 23, 1863. 
To Captain. 

Mustered out June 29, 
1865. 



Sept. 3, 
Mar. 12, 
Nov. 5, 



Sept. 3, 
Aug. 10, 
April 7, 
April 5, 
Mar, 10, 
May 3. 
Aug. 11, 



To Lieut. Colonel. 
To Lieut. Colonel. 



Must, out with Co. D, 
June 29, 1865. 



Resigned Aug. 8, 1862. 

To Captain. 

I Died May 22, '64, of 
a wounds received at 

( Spottsylvania, Va. 
Must, out as 2d Lieut. 

June 29, 1865. 
Resigned Aug. 4, 1862. 

Resigned Aug. 23, 1862. 



'62 Killed at Gettysburg. 
July 2, 1863. 



* Formerly of 84th Pa. Vols. Mustered out as Captain Company I, con- 
solidated regiment, June 29, L865. 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 169 

Rosier of Fifty-Seventh Pennsylvania Veteran Volunteers.— Continued. 



RANK AND NAME. 



COUNTY OR 
RESIDENCE. 



RANK 
FROM 



REMARKS. 



2d Lieut. Henry M. Adams 

Cyrus P. Slaven.- 

" Geo. W. Lower... 

Company K. 

Capt. Cornelius S. Chase- • 

Alanson H. Nelson. • 

" Ellis C. Strouss 

1st Lieut. A. H. Nelson — 
Thos. J. Crossley. 
2d Lieut. Chester F. Morse 
John M. Robinson 
Ellis C. Strouss... 
Isaac Manes 



Bradford. 
Crawford. 
Blair 



Crawford. 



Blair 



July 5, 
June 18, 
April 5, 

Sept. 4, 
June 17, 
Nov. IS, 
Sept. 4, 
Dec. 1, 
Sept. 4, 
Dec. 1, 
June 28. 
June 9, 



Killed in front Peters- 
burg, Va., June 15, '64. 

To 1st Lieutenant Co. 
D. 

Must, out 1st Sergeant 
June 29, 1865. 

Died June 17,'62,wds. 

rec'd Fair Oaks, Va. 

May 31, 1862. 
Must, out ex. of term, 

Nov. 4, 1864. 
Must, out with Co. E, 

June 29, 1865. 
To Captain. 

Hon. dis. December 

30, 1864. 
Resigned Dec. 10, 1862. 

Hon. dis. June 27, 1864. 

To Captain. 

Must, out 1st Sergeant 
June 29, 1865. 



12 



170 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 



APPENDIX B. 



REPORT OF DR. JOHN W. LYMAN, 

Surgeon of the Fifty- Seventh Regiment Pennsylvania 
Volunteers. 

Camp near Poolesville, Md., 
Headquarters 57th Regiment, Pa. Volunteers. 

October 23, 1862. 

The 57th Regiment* P. V.„ was organized at Harrisburg, 
Pa., and was mustered into the United States service in the 
latter part of October, 1861. 

While in Camp Curttn the men suffered, like most other 
newly organized regiments, from rubeola, in common with 
the whole camp. Variola was also present, but by thorough 
and careful vaccination of the men as fast as recruited its 
spread was prevented, only two cases of varioloid occurring 
in the regiment. Typhoid fever, incident to the season in that 
region, diarrhoea and dysentery, the result of sudden change 
of diet, and other habits of life, as well as the crowded state 
of the camp, involving imperfect police arrangements, bad 
sinks, etc., together with the usual excesses of raw recruits, 
contributed to keep the sick list of the regiment, at that 
time numbering about 800 men, up to the average of fifty 
cases in hospital and quarters, or a little over 6 per cent. 

During the prevalence of rubeola the regiment was ordered 
to Washington, D. C, about the middle of December, and 
though the intention of the medical officer was to have left 
all cases of measles behind, what with the anxiety of the 
convalescents to go along, and new cases occurring on the 
way, it was found when reaching Washington, that we had 
no less than fifteen (cases of rubeola *in various stages of pro- 
gress,, and in three days nearly double that number. 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. IJl 

The men were very much exposed to the effects of cold 
diuring the trip, being two dayis and nights in open cars. 
The site selected for a camp — near Bladensburg toll-gate — 
was a tad one, low and wet. The result was many cases- 
of pneumonia as a complication or sequella of rubeola, with 
innumerable catarrhs of all degrees of severity. Pour cases 
of pneumonia resulted fatally the second week. Many more 
were sent to the general hospital as soon as admittance could 
be obtained for them. At first admittance was refused! for 
fear of infecting the hospitals. Stimulants were freely used 
with benefit in simple rubeola as well as that complicated 
with pneumonia. 

A change of camp to better gr'ound about the 1st of Jan- 
uary, 1862, together with a full supply of medical and hospi- 
tal stores, effected a gradual improvement, but the appear- 
ance of mumps 1 among the men before the measles had en- 
tirely disappeared kept the sick list large all winter, some- 
times as great a proportion as 10 per cent, of the whole 
command. The men were quartered in Sibley tents, not 
more than 10 or 12 in a tent, inspected daily, and by great 
care in cleanliness and ventilation, typhus fever was avoided, 
and but few cases of typhoid' appeared. 

In February we were moved to near Fort Lyon, below 
Alexandria, and placed in General Jameson's brigade, from 
which time until nearly the last of August, the military his- 
tory lis nearly identical with that of the other regiments of 
the same brigade and its medical history similar. They 
were the 63d and 105th Pennsylvania and the 87th New York 
Volunteers. 

On the 17th of March we were shipped 1 on board trans- 
ports at Alexandria for Fortress Monroe, where we were 
landed at dark during a cold rain storm, to which the men 
were exposed during the night, in and by the roadside, with- 
out any protection whatever. The next day and night they 
were quartered in open horse sheds. Then for two weeks 
they were camped in open fields near Hampton, in shelter- 
tents, in the use of which the men were entirely unskilled, a 
matter of more moment than would at first appear. The 
result of the unusual exposure was the appearance of dysen- 
tery to considerable extent among' the men, even at that 
early season. 



172 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

On the 4th and 5th o)f April we were marched from Hamp- 
ton to within three miles of Yorktown and confined for one 
week within short range of the rebel guns. A heavy rain 
flooded the tents for four days, during two of which neither 
officers nor men had anything to eat. The brigade was then 
moved back half a mile into the woods, to a spot in the 
immedliate vicinity of several large marshes; 'in fact, the 
ciamp itself was little better than a swamp. For three weeks 
the men walked in mud, slept in mud, and drank water 
from holes scooped out in the mud. The combined remon- 
strance of the medical officers of the brigade, that a "month's 
continuance an that place would deprive the Government of 
the services of one-half the men and) officers," was met by 
the sileniciing reply: "It is a military necessity." 

The subsequent amount of sickness shows that our fears 
were well founded. The malaria imbibed in the marshes and 
swamps at Yorktown, together with the excessive amount 
of labor performed there, on picket and 'in the trenches, 
debilitated our men for months, putting dozens of them in 
their graves and rendered hundreds of them unfit for service 
for months, many of them for life. 

We had one man killed by a shell and five wounded while 
before Yorktown, in the skirmish of the "peach orchard," and 
two by accident, one shot through the penis and scrotum, 
above the testicle, and behind! the cord and thigh, by a 
small sized rifle bullet, recovered! rapidly by simple dress- 
ing. One shot through the leg died afterwards in general 
hospital. Remainder slight wounds. 

On the 4th of May we again marched! in pursuit of the 
enemy, leaving forty-three sick in hospital and sending 
four back next day, mostly cases of remittent fever, some 
diarrhoea and dysentery. 

The 5th we marched nine miles through deep mud and 
rain to the battlefield ini front of Williamsburg, the last four 
and a half on the double quick and a run. The men, ex- 
hausted, in profuse perspiration, and 1 wet to the skin, were 
obliged to lie on their arms during the night without either 
blankets or fires. From that hour the sickness of the regi- 
ment increased frightfully, six or eight new cases occurring 
daily. We left twenty-seven men in hospital at Williams- 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 1 73 

burg, sent six to transports at West Point when opposite 
that plane, sent sixty away at Cumberland Landing, left 
forty^eight at Baltimore Store, and had sixty-four on the 
sick list at Bottom's Bridge on the 31st of May. 

At the battle of Fair Oaks, onj the last day of May, we 
lost of men andl officers eleven killed and forty-nine wounded. 
Of the last, twenty-three were' wounds of the upper extrem- 
ities, two requiring amputation of the arm, and one exsection 
of the elbow joints; twelve of the lower extremities, four of 
thigh, seven of leig, and one of knee joint, eight of trunk 
(three serious); six of head (one serious), and two of both 
upper and lower extremities. 

While at Fair Oaks from the 1st to the 29th of June, the 
regiment suffered greatly from ifever and dysentery, the first 
of miastamic ort'gin, which, together with the effect of con- 
stant apprehension, rendered the nervous system highly im- 
pressible. Hence the marked effect of the malaria upon the 
nervous centers, especially the spine, as evidenced by the 
almost iconstantly present — to a greater or less degree — 
numbing of the extremities with partial paralysis of the 
lower, usually severe pafn in the hips and lumbar region, 
with great depression of spirits, etc. 

The diarrhoea, as well as all diseases resulting from bad 
digestion or affections of the digestive organs, were caused 
mainly, if not entirely, toy improper habits of cooking and 
eating. Each soldier cooked for himself, having no other 
implements than a small tin pail made from fruit can, a 
tin cup and a borrowed frying pan. Every leisure moment 
was devoted to cooking and eating; meat of every descrip- 
tion was fried instead of being boiled. All regularity in 
eating was lost, except that uncertain kind, produced by 
relief from the routine of dtoty. (Nor can any remedy be sug- 
gested short of the entire removal of the cooking business 
from the hands of the soldier, and placing it in charge of a 
competent corps organized for that special purpose. Soldiers 
cannot march and fight each with a complete stock of cook- 
ing furniture on his back. 

In an active campaign like that on the Peninsula, officers 
suffer from bad cooking equally with the men. Servants are 
an uncertain kind 1 of dependencies and often oibf.'ged to cook 



174 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

for himself, the officer is of course as unskilled as the sol- 
dier. A regimental mess for the officers of this regiment 
under charge of a competent cook, established a few weeks 
ago, has already proved decidedly advantageous. A similar 
arrangement for the men, for instance by companies, would 
be found to be as great an (improvement. 

For five days before icommencing the retreat from before 
Richmond to Harrison's Landing our men were almost con- 
stantly on dlutyi On the 29th of June they skirmished all 
day, then marched half of the night. The next day (30th) 
they fought at Charles City Cross Roads, losing seven killed) 
and fifty-six wounded, most of whom fell into the hands of 
the enemy. They watched until two o'clock a. m., July 1st, 
then marched to Malvern Hill, fought there, losing two killed 
and eight wounded; remained on picket until 9 a. m. next 
morning, then marched twelve miles through deep mud and 
hard rain to Harrison's Landing, camped at night in the mud, 
then moved three miles and! camped permanently for out- 
post duty. 

All were exhausted and disheartened, scarcely a well man* 
in the regiment, two hundred and thirty on the sick list for 
the first few days: Scurvy made its appearance to a small 
extent, yet sufficient to complicate and multiply other ail- 
ments. However, a few weeks' rest, abundance of fresh 
vegetables, lemons and ice, and we were ready to commence 
the retreat from the Peninsula with two hundred and fifty 
men for duty, having lost ifour by death at Harrison's Land- 
ing — two by typhoid fever, one from entraperitonitis and one 
from phthisis pulmonalis. 

On reaching Alexandria we (immediately moved to the 
Rappahannock, had no sickness of moment except two cases 
of sunstroke, being actively engaged, yet not overworked. 

We had three wounded at Bull Run, one in the hand, one 
in the hip, and one in the breast and face. These last two 
have since died. 

The present health of the regiment is good and its moral 
condition excellent. 

The general conclusions we arrive at are: 

First. — That constant seasonable activity is necessary to 
promote the health of the regiment. 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 1 75 

Second. — Men accustomed to exposure in the open air 
when attacked by fever of any kind, recover with much more 
certainty and much siooner in tents than in general hospitals 
in houses, probably because less crowded and admitting 
more perfect ventilation and free access to light. 

J. W. LYMAN, 
Surgeon 57th Reg't., Pa. Vols. 



176 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 



APPENDIX C. 



THE 57th PA. VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 

THEIR SERVICES TO THE STATE 
AND TO THE NATION. 

Address of Col. L. D. Bumpus to His Comrades at 
Gettysburg, July 2, 1888, on the Occasion of the 
Dedication of the Battlefield Monument of the 57th 
Pennsylvania Veteran Volunteers. 

The 57th Regt., Pa. Vet. Vols., which was made up largely 
of Mercer county men, dedicated, on Monday, July 2d, one 
of the finest monuments on the Gettysburg field. 

The exercises were opened with prayer by Rev. Dr. Sayres, 
Department Chaplain of the G. A. R., after which Col. L. D. 
Bumpus, President of the Monument Committee, introduced 
Capt. H. H. Hinds, who made a few remarks on the move- 
ments of the 3d corps and the work done by the 57th regi- 
ment. When Captain Hinds had concluded, the audience 
sang the hymn "America," after which Capt. D. W. Gore, 
Secretary of the Monument Association, introduced Col. L. 
D. Bumpus in the following speech: 

It would not be necessary to introduce the orator for this 
occasion to an audience composed of the members of the old 
57th regiment, tut as there are many strangers present it 
would perhaps be proper for me to say that he is a man who 
was identified, with the 57th regiment during the entire his- 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 1 77 

tory of its eventful existence. He wag with us in our various 
marches, in our numerous encampments, and in our many 
hard-fought battles. He entered the army as a mere boy and 
rose from the ranks to the command of the regiment before 
reaching his majority. He was known throughout the army 
as the boy captain. It is largely due to his tireless efforts 
that we are enabled to dedicate this beautiful monument to- 
day. He was true to his country, true to himself,, and true 
to the men of his command. No braver officer ever drew a 
sword in defence of the old flag and no man enjoyed to a 
greater degree the respect and regard of his old comrades 
in arms than does Col. L. D. Bumpus, whom I now introduce 
to you as the orator for this occasion. 



COLONEL, BUMPUS' ADDRESS. 

Comrades >of the 57th Pennsylvania Veteran Volunteers: 

In obedience to your command, I have appeared' before 
you in many different characters. I have, with you, trudged 
along on the weary march and carried my gun, knapsack and 
forty rounds. And in obedience to your call, I rose rank by 
rank, until I had tJhe honor to command the grand old: regi- 
ment. Today, in obedience to your call, I standi before you 
in a new role; that of orator for this occasion. However 
well I may have been able to fill the positions to which you 
have called me heretofore, I do not hope to meet your expec- 
tations today. I am what President Lincoln was pleased to 
call one of the plain people; and' you wiM not be treated today 
to any flights of oratory or grand play of words. But I shall 
try to speak words of truth with soberness; and whatever 
else of merit my remarks may lack, I trust you will do me 
the justice to believe that they emanate from an honest 
heart. 

Our g*cod historian, Captain Strouss, has relieved me of 
the necessity of going into history, and I shall confine my 
remarks to the trials and triumphs of the grand regiment to 
which we had the honor to belong. I need not speak of the 
causes that led to the war, for they were so well understood 
by every man who marched in the ranks that they are as 
familiar as household words. We are met here today as 
Pennsylvanians on Pennsylvania soil, on one of the greatest 
battlefields of the war; and I propose to speak of the part 



178 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

Pennsylvania, and more particularly the part the 57th regi- 
ment, took in suppressing the rebellion. 

When war came, it found us ill prepared. We had a little 
army scattered throughout the territories; a weak navy, 
lying at anchor in distant waters; a bankrupt treasury, and 
a government without credit. What added to the uncer- 
tainty of the result, the people of the North were divided on 
party issues, and many honest inen believed that there was 
no power in the Constitution to coerce a State. All these 
difficulties confronted President Lincoln, and he was appalled 
at their magnitude. He called upon the Governors of several 
of the loyal States to counsel with him in his dread emer- 
gency. They met at the White House. The President in- 
formed them of the terrible cloud that hung like a pall 
over our fair land, and asked their advice about issuing a 
proclamation, calling upon the people for troops to put down 
the retellion, and w^ith his hands folded behind him awaited 
their answer. The six or seven Governors who formed his 
auditors had leach expressed his opinion, but they were 
punctuated by too many "ifs" or "ands>." While this was 
going on, Governor Andrew G. 'Curtin, fresh from his moun- 
tain home, stood looking through the window. He had not 
yet been approached by the President, personally. There 
was profound! but awful silence in that small but thoughtful 
party of distinguished men. 

President Lincoln finally broke the silent spell, and, turn- 
ing to Governor Curtin, said: "Governor, what will Penn- 
sylvania do, if I issue my proclamation?" Silence more pro- 
found prevailed. It was a momentous question. It seemed 
as if the fate of a nation depended 1 upon the reply about to 
be made. Manifest destiny seemed trembling in the bal- 
ance. Governor Curtin faced the President and said: "What 
will Pennsylvania do? Why, sir, if you issue your procla- 
mation, Pennsylvania will give you a hundred thousand men 
in one week." Thank God for that noble answer! Truly 
Andrew G. Curtin was the right man in the right place. He 
was the Richelieu who thwarted the conspirators of the 
American rebellion. 

But how did the boys of 1861 fulfill the promises of Gov- 
ernor Curtin? The call to arms came, and before that tor- 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 1 79 

nado of patriotism which followed, "men came as the winds 
oome when forests' are rended; came as the wares come 
when navies are stranded." You all know the story: how 
the flag went down amidist the smoke of battle; how the 
fight was long and bloody; how, finally, the great waves of 
Secession, Slavery and Rebellion rolled aioross our bordering 
line and rebapt ; sed the soil of Pennsylvania with the blood 
of patriots. And then, 

" Through every vale and glen, 

Beating like resolute pulses, 
She feels the tread of men; 

But she stands like an ocean break-water 
In fierce rebellion's path, 

To shiver its angry surges 
And baffle its frantic wrath. 

And the tide of Slavery's treason 
Dashed on her in vain, 

Rolling back from the ramparts of freedom. 
In the land: of 'Mad Anthony Wayne.' " 

I will not attempt to recount the deeds of the soldiers of 
Pennsylvania; to do so would be to repeat the history of the 
war. For with but few exceptions there it not a battlefield 
ifrom Gettysburg to Mobile where the ground has not been 
stained with the blood of the soldiers of Pennsylvania. There 
is not a State, loyal or insurrectionary, which was the seat 
of war, that does not hold! within it the honored and sacred 
remains of the slain heroes of Pennsylvania. When Beaure- 
gard first trained his murderous guns upon Port Sumter, 
Pennsylvania was there, Pennsylvania volunteers were the 
first to reach the National Capitol. We were at Appomat- 
tox when traitors fired their last volley; and in all those 
terrible intermediate struggles 'in every rebellious State, in 
every important battle on land or water, where treason was 
to be confronted or rebellion subdued, the soldiers and sailors 
of Pennsylvania were ever found, confronting the one and 
conquering the other. Therefore, it was in true historic 
order that the wicked, struggle to terminate the Union should 
culminate upon our soil, that its topmost wave should be 
dashed against our Capital; that its decisive defeat should 
be secured here where literal bulwarks of upheaved slain 
preserved the North from the despooling foot of a traitor, 



I So HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

and, accordingly, the rebellion staggered back from Gettys- 
burg to its grave. Remember that at Gettysburg the blood 
of the people of eighteen loyal States, rich, precious blood, 
mingling together, sank into the soil of Pennsylvania, and 
by that red covenant she is pledged for all time to Union, 
to Patroitism and to Nationality. 

Comrade, with a record like this have we not much to 
be proud of? iSuch heroism as I have recounted is too sub- 
lime ifor the common language of humanity; a heroism 
which is patriotic, and a heroism which is heroic; a 
heroism which blends in beautiful symmetry the moral and 
the physical; a heroism which will shine with increasing 
luster as generations pass away. No longer need we look 
back through the centuries for deeds of noble daring. We 
can point with pride to our own record in the great War 
of the Retiellion for achievements that will rival Spartan 
valor or Roman fortitude. 

The 57th regiment was organized early in the fall of 
1861, at Camp Curtin, Pennsylvania, and in December of 
that year was ordered to Washington and went into camp 
on the Rladensburg pike, near the old toll gate, and subse- 
quently became a part of the Army of the Potomac. From 
that time until you were mustered out, the history of the 
Army of the Potomac was your history. You received your 
first baptism of fire at Yorktown on April 11, 1862, and 
from that time until the close of the war you participated 
in every important engagement of that Army, excepting 
Antietam. That you did your duty faithfully and well your 
list of .casualties will prove. The records of the War De- 
partment show that in every engagement you lost men 
and lin some of them from iforty to sixty per cent, of the 
whole number engaged. The original strength of the regi- 
ment was eight hundred and. fifty men, and your casualties 
were over eight hundred during the war; and at the final 
muster out but one of the original officers of the regiment 
remainedl to be mustiered out with you. Chaplain W. T. 
McAdam. 

I will now quote from the speech of Hon. Chauncey 
Depew, before the Society of the Army of the Potomac. 
He says: "Each oif the great armiles had its distinguishing 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. I«I 

merit; but in the achievements and in the records of the 
Western forces, following the precedent of previous wars, 
are largely represented the genius and personality of great 
commanders." To the Army of the Potomac belongs the 
unique distinction of being its own hero. It fought more 
battles and lost more in Willed and wounded than all others; 
it shed its blood like water to teach incompetent officers 
the art of war, and 'political tacticians the folly of their 
plans; but it was always the same invincible and undis- 
mayed Army of the Potomac. Loyal ever to its mission 
and to discipline, the only sound it gave in protest was the 
cracking of the bones as the cannon balls ploughed through 
its decimated ranks. A good soldier does full honor to his 
adversary. Although Americans on the wrong side, no more 
formidable force of equal number ever marched or fought 
than the Army of Northern Virginfa, and it had the rare 
fortune of being always under the command of one of the 
most creative and accomplished military minds of his time. 
Gen. Robert E. Lee. 

To conquer and capture such an army the captain of the 
Army of the Potomac must overcome what the greatest 
tactician has said was impossible, "an armed enemy in his 
own country," with the whole population venomously hos- 
tile; acting as spies; furnishing information, removing sup- 
plies; preparing ambuscades, and misleading the invaders. 
But it did accomplish this military miracle. It was hard 
and trying to be marched and countermarched for naught; 
to be separated and paralyzed at the moment when a su- 
preme effort meant victory; to be hurled against impassable 
defenses, andi then waste in repairing the mistake. The 
Army of the Potomac, was composed of thinking bayonets. 
Behind each musket was a man who knew for what he was 
fighting, and who understood the plan of campaign, and 
with unerring and terrible accuracy sized up his commander. 
The one soldier in whom he never lost confidence was him- 
self. 

This army operated so near the Capitol that Congress- 
men and newspapers directed its movements, changed its 
officers and criticised its ifailures to icionquer on blue lines 
penciled on Washington maps. It suffered four years under 



1 82 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

unparalleled abuse, and was encouraged by little praise, 
but never murmured. It saw all its corps and division com- 
manders sign a petition to the President to remove its gen- 
eral, and then despairingly but heroically marched to cer- 
tain disaster at his order. It saw its general demand the 
resignation or court martial of its corps or division officers, 
and yet, undemoralized and undismayed, it charged under 
his successor in a chaos of conflicting commands. "On to 
Richmond! " came the unthinking cry from every city, vil- 
lage and cross roads in the North. "On to Richmond! " 
shouted grave Senators and impetuous Congressmen. "On 
to Richmond! ! " ordered the Cabinet. No longer able to 
resist the popular demand, the raw and untrained recruits 
were hurled from their unformed organizations and driven 
back to Washington. Then, with discipline and drill, out 
of chaos came order; the self-deserting volunteer has be- 
come an obedient soldier; the mass has become moulded 
into a complex but magnificent machine; and it was the 
Army of the Potomac! Overcoming untold! difficulties, fight- 
ing with superb courage, it comes in sight of the spires of 
Richmond, and then, unable to succeed, because McDowell 
and his corps o;f thirty thousand men are held back, it re- 
news each morning and carries on every night in retreat 
the Seven Days' Battle for existence; and, brought to bay 
at Malvern Hill, asserts its undaunted spirit in hard won 
victory. It follows Pope and marches and falls back; pursues 
enemies who are not before it, and finds foes for which it 
is unprepared, and fights and is beaten under orders so con- 
tradictory and councils so divided, that an army of European 
veterans would have disbanded. Immediately, it recognizes 
a general in whom it has confidence. The stragglers come 
from the bush and the wounded from the hospitals; regi- 
ments, brigades, divisions and corps reform, and at Antietam 
it is invincible and irresistible. 

Every man in the ranks knew that the fortified heights 
of Fredericksburg were impregnable, that the forlorn hope 
would charge, not into the imminent deadly breach, but 
into a death trap, and yet with unfaltering step this grand 
army salutes its blind* commander and marches to the 
slaughter! 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 183 

" Theirs not to reason why, 
Theirs not to make reply, 
Theirs hut to do and die! " 

Every private was aware of the follies of the Rappahan- 
nock campaign. He knew that the opportunity to inflict an 
'irreparable blow upon the army of Lee had been trifled 
away, and that after reckless delays to make a movement 
which at first would have been a surprise, conceived by the 
very genius of war, was then mere mid-summer madness; 
and yet this incomparable army, floundered through swamps, 
lost in almost impenetrable forests, outflanked, outmaneu- 
vered, outgeneraled, decimated, no sooner felt the firm hand 
of Meade than it destroyed the offensive and aggressive 
power of the Confederacy in the three days' fighting at 
Gettysburg. 

At last, this Smmortal army had at its head a great 
Captain, who had never Lost a battle. Every morning for 
thirty days came the order to storm the works in front and 
every evening for thirty nights the survivors moved to the 
command of "By the left flank, iforward! " and at the end of 
that fateful month, with sixty thousand comrades dead or 
wounded in the Wilderness, the Army of the Potomac once 
mom after four years, saw the spires of Richmond. Inflexi- 
ble of purpose, Unsensible to suffering, inured to fatigue and 
reckless of danger, it rained blow on blow upon its heroic 
but staggering foe; and the world gained a new and better 
and freer and more enduring reputilic than it had ever 
known, in the surrender of Appomattox. All the trials and 1 
triumphs, all the hardships and privations, all the defeats 
arid humiliations I have enumerated you shared in common 
with the Army of the Potomac. 

In addition to this, in March. 1864, upon the reorganiza- 
tion of the army, the grand old 3di corps, to which you be- 
longed, was broken up; a corps with a name and a record 
as brilliant as any organization in the army, a corps that 
had furnished a galaxy of names second to none in bril- 
liancy; such names as He'ntzelman, Hamilton and Sickles, 
Kearny and Hooker, and Birney and 1 Berry. You must lose 
your identity, and 1 were ordered to lay off the badge which 
you had honored, the old diamond which you loved; the 



184 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

badge that was put there in obedience to the orders of the 
dashing Kearny, and in its stead put on the badge of another 
corps. Against these humiliating orders there was no in- 
subordination, no murmur, or protest; but with heroic cour- 
age you marched to victory under other officers and as a 
part at another organization. You asked the powers to 
allow you to wear the old badge, and, thanks to General 
Grant's love of fair play, you were allowed to retain the old 
diamondi, and from that time until the surrender in every 
game of war diamonds were trump, and if you did not have 
a full hand, you could always be depended on to take a 
trick. Another humiliation which you hadi to endure as a 
regiment was in January, 1865, when the regiment, having 
been greatly reduced in strength by the severity of the sum- 
mer's campaign, was, in obedience to special orders of the 
War Department, dated January 11, 1865, broken up and 
consolidated into a battalion of six companies, and you saw 
your officers who had risen from the ranks, officers of your 
own choosing, officers whom you loved, mustered out and 
sent home as supernumeraries. Like Moses of old, who was 
not permitted to gaze upon the Promised Land, so some 
•cif your officers, after nearly four years of war, after having 
passed through more than a score of battles, after having 
endured all the hardships and privations that I have enu- 
merated, within sixty days of reaching the goal ifor which 
they had been fighting, were mustered out and were not per- 
mitted with you to stand at Appomattox and gaze upon the 
shattered reHics of the Southern Confederacy. 

Comrades, if I had the tame I would like to name each 
loved comrade who fell in battle, diedi of wounds or sank 
down from exhaustion on the weary march; and those who 
died a lingering death of starvation in prison pens, or died 
cf disease in some hospital, far from home and mother and 
friends, and who lie scattered through the South, in graves 
that only God shall know until] the resurrection morning. 
I would like to follow you from the time of your enlistment 
until the time the regiment came home, few and worn, with 
many a powder breath upon its flag and many a bullet hole 
through its folds. I would also speak of Sides and Neeper 
and Perkins and Lyons and Hill and McCartney and Morse 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 1 85 

and Crossley and Oom stock and Burns and scores of others 
who seemed to have borne charmed lives and who were 
discharged and sent home when the war was over, but who 
have at last been mustered out. They have passed to the 
other side of the silent river. They have been made noble 
by God's patent. They have responded to the roll-call 
among men for the last time, until that day when the names 
of all the living and the dead shall be sounded before the 
Great White Throne. 

I would go back through the haze of years to hear the 
rattling drums, the bugle's call, the loud hooray, the tramp 
of soldier boys. I see the waving flags, the red cheeked lads, 
the bearded men; I see long lines marching out to do and 
die; I hear the mothers' cries, the sobs of wives, the sisters' 
wail, the sweethearts' moan; and then comes waiting, day by 
day and night by night, the women in darkened homes, the 
men amidst the dangers of the field. Today is hope; to- 
morrow comes the news, the dreadful news, the battle's 
crash, the roar of guns, the din of war, the sharp command, 
the fire and smoke, the whirl, the charge, the awful shock, 
the iron hoof, the swinging sword, the gush of blood, the 
piteous groan, the dying hero and the dead. Oh, b'tterness 
of victory! Oh, homes made desolate! How many hearts 
the battle breaks that never laid a hand to sword! How 
many tears must flow for wrong from eyes that only saw 
the right! The lesson that we read in blood is one we never 
can forget, and God has taught us this, as long ago he 
taught the lesson of the cross. Not for his friends alone 
was that blood shed, but for his enemies as well; and by 
this latter blood not one but all of us shall live; and on 
foundations firm as heaven itself the new Republic rises 
strong and towering upward to the sky; its glistening sum- 
mits Kft their points until they touch the far off blue, and 
overtopping all the world, they stand up clear against the 
clouds, so that the very lowest down may see, and, seeing, 
know that what they see is Freedom's home. 

After nearly four years of war, with the great Rebellion 
subdued, with not an armed enemy within our borders, the 
57th Pennsylvania Volunteers was mustered out June 29, 
1865, and we write "finis" on the last page of the military 

13 



1 86 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

history of one of the grandest organizations that ever took 
up arms for the preservation of a "Government of the 
people, for the people and by the people." 

Upon separating for your homes, your officers issued an 
address to the surviving members, from which I quote: 
"Parting as a band of trothers, let us cling to the memory 
of those tattered banners under which we have fought to- 
gether and which, without dishonor, we have just now re- 
stored to the authorities, who placed them in our hands. 
Till we grow gray-headed and pass away, let us sustain the 
reputation of this noble old regiment." That you have ob- 
served the injunction of your officers in that address, the 
testimony of your neighbors in every place in which you have 
lived since the war wtll prove. When you were discharged 
you had but one ambition. In that one supreme moment of 
triumph, your only thought was of home and family and 
friends. You went back into the localities from which you 
came, into the ranks as citizens; taking up the daily burden 
of 1'ife where you had thrown it down when enlisting, ceas- 
ing to be soldiers and becoming again private citizens. 
There was no evidence of the contaminating influence of 
camp life in your characters. There was no disorder where 
you went. On the contrary, your presence became the sign 
of order. You showed the world that great as you had been 
as soldiers, you had never forgotten that you were citizens. 

Most speakers who have made similar addresses upon 
this great battlefield of the war have made more extended 
remarks upon the movements of the army during the three 
days' fighting here, and some have censured certain com- 
manders. The battle of Gettysburg has given rise to a great 
many controversies, and each commander has been censured 
and complimented in turn. Doubleday charges that How- 
ard's troops gave way; Howard affirms that Doubleday's 
troops broke. General Meade is charged with ordering a 
retreat. One speaker charges that General Sickles made a 
great blunder in taking up a position too far in advance, 
which well nigh proved disastrous to our army. With all 
these charges I have nothing to do. I am not here to cen- 
sure or find ifault. I have only to do with the part you to'ok 
as a regiment. Whether, as some speakers claim, Sickles 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 187 

saved the day and gained a victory by taking and holding an 
advanced line on July 2d, until the Roundtops could be oc- 
cupied, or whether, as others assert. Hancock, the "Superb," 
gained the victory by brilliant generalship and magnificent 
fighting on the 3d, I will leave the historian to decide. Suf- 
fice it to say, the 57th did her duty by obeying orders, and 
that is all that is required of any soldier or set of soldiers. 
You went as far as the farthest and left seventy per cent, 
of your number behind, when you were obliged to abandon 
the line. In regard to the movements of the 3d corps. I will 
simply read what President Lincoln wrote to General Sickles 
in reply to a request that a court of inquiry should be con- 
vened to inquire into his conduct during the battle. The 
President writes: 

"My Dear Sickles: You ask for a court of inquiry. They 
say you took up an advanced position on July 2d. They say 
you 'Crowded the enemy and brought on an engagement. I 
guess what they say is true; but, thank God, you gained a 
great victory. There were honors enough won at Gettysburg 
to go all round. History will do you justice. Don't ask for 
a court of inquiry. 

[Signed] A. Lincoln." 

Comrades, in all countries and in all ages the people have 
reared monuments to the memory of their dead heroes; their 
deeds of valor have been told in song and story, and the 
people have delighted to do them honor. The great Com- 
monwealth of Pennsylvania, recognizing the services of her 
brave soldiers, during the sitting of the last Legislature 
passed an act appropriating fifteen hundred dollars to build 
a monument to each regiment that participated in the battle 
of Gettysburg. In accordance with the provisions of that 
act, Capt. D. W. Gore, Capt. H. H. Nelson, Lieut. George 
Miller, Comrade Theodore Catlin and myself, were elected 
as a committee by the surviving members of the regiment 
to select the location, submit designs, and erect a monument. 

We organized at Gettysburg by electing your speaker 
chairman, and Captain Gore secretary. Not knowing the 
magnitude of the work before us, July 2d was agreed upon 
as the day upon which our monument should be dedicated. 
Scattered as the members of the committee were, over two 



1 88 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

States and the District of Columbia, thus rendering it difficult 
to convene them, it was thought best that the chairman and 
secretary be authorized to act for the committee. The labor 
and expense thus devolved upon us have been considerable. 
We have been met with many and unlooked for obstacles; 
but one by one they have been overcome, and the result of 
our work is before you. 

As chairman of your committee, in the name of the tax- 
payers of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, I present you 
with this beautiful monument, which will stand while gen- 
erations pass away, as a monument to the valor and patri- 
otism of the 57th regiment, and to the generosity of the 
citizens of this grand old State. Pennsylvania honors her- 
self in thus honoring the memory of those who fell in her 
defence. We dedicate this memorial shaft, not to those who 
fell at Gettysburg alone, but to the eight hundred who were 
swallowed up by the tide of death on other fields; in prison 
pens, in hospitals, and on the lonely picket line. We dedi- 
cate it to every member of that grand old regiment, either 
living or dead. We dedicate it to our children and our chil- 
dren's children forever. 

And when the few of us who yet survive shall have passed 
on to "join the innumerable caravan," may coming genera- 
tions, as they gather 'round this granite shaft and read the 
record chisled here, learn lessons of patriotism and heroic 
devotion and here may they gain inspiration and strength, 
which shall make them brave defenders of their country's 
institutions and her flag, which we so much love. 

Comrades, I cannot refrain from saying a few parting 
words to you. As I look over this audience, I am reminded 
that the boys of 1861 are now men on the down-hill side of 
life. The hand of time has silvered the hair and plowed 
deep furrows in the cheeks of the comrades I see gathered 
about me, and this will probably be the last roll-call to 
which a considerable number of the old regiment will re- 
spond. Soon these pleasant meetings, these delightful and 
hallowed associations, with each and all of us must come to 
an end. Let us live all the more closely together, then, in 
the brief road that remains to us. Let us be truer to our 
common name and common fame, so that we shall leave 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 1 89 

nothing behind us which will tarnish the polished and war- 
worn escutcheons of the grand old 57th regiment. Let us 
continue to be good citizens. Let us lead such lives that 
when we hear the last tattoo and the lights are ordered out 
<on earth, we shall be awakened by the reveille at the tent of 
the Great Commander and bidden to seats at Headquarters. 



The following is a letter from General Longstreet to 
General Sickles: 
Gen. D. E. Sickles, Gettysburg, Pa.: 

My Dear General Sickles: My plan and desire was to 
meet you at Gettysburg on the interesting ceremony attend- 
ing the unveiling of the Slocum monument; but today I find 
myself in no condition to keep the promise made to you 
when last we were together. I am quite disabled from a 
severe hurt in one of my feet, so that I am unable to stand 
more than a minute or two at a time. Please express my 
sincere regrets to the noble Army of the Potomac, and to 
accept them, especially, for yourself. 

On that field you made your mark that will place you 
prominently before the world as one of the leading figures 
of the most important battle of the Civil War. As a North- 
ern veteran once remarked to me: "General Sickles can 
well afford to leave a leg on that field " 

I believe that it Is now conceded that the advanced posi- 
tion at the Peach Orchard, taken by your corps and under 
your orders, saved that battlefield to the Union cause. It 
was the sorest and saddest reflection of my life for many 
years; but, today, I can say, with sincerest emotion, that 
it was and is the best that could have come to us all, North 
and South; and I hope that the nation reunited, may always 
enjoy the honor and glory brought to it by that grand work. 

Please offer my kindest salutations to your Governor and 
your fellow-comrades of the Army of the Potomac. 
Always yours sincerely, 

[Signed] James Longstreet, 
Lieut.-Gen. Confederate Army. 



190 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 



APPENDIX D. 



Reminiscences of the Fifty-Seventh Regiment, 
by Gen. William Birney. 

Comrades: — It gives me pleasure to respond to your de- 
sire for my reminiscences of the 57th Regiment, Pennsyl- 
vania Volunteers. They are all agreeable. 

My first knowledge of it was from the gallant and chival- 
rous General Philip Kearny, under whom I had served in 
the New Jersey Brigade. August 12, 1862, I was ex- 
changed as prisoner of war. August 13, the General sent for 
me and offered me the command of the 57th. speaking in 
very high terms af the intelligence, bravery and moral 
stamina of the men. All it needed, he said, to become one 
of the best regiments in the army was drill and discipline. 
I accepted his offer, was detailed by General McClellan from 
my own regiment and dorps to General Kearny's took com- 
mand next day at the camp on James river, at Harrison's 
Landing, and kept it until October 12. These two months 
were filled with active service. 

Your historian, in ifcis kindly notice, has gtven a 
wrong version of the only unpleasantness that ever existed 
between General Kearny and me. Allow me to correct it. 
At a division drill, in the winter of 1861-2, conducted by 
General Torbert, I commanded a regiment. Receiving a 
wrong order from the brigade commander, I executed the 
movement, as was my duty. General Kearny, who was on 
the field, rode rapidly up behind me, hissed in my ears: 
"Major Birney, you'd better sf.'idy your tactics, sir," rode 
off about fifty yards and halted. Being very angry at this un- 
merited reproof given me while at the head of my regiment, I 
lolliowed him, expressed my resentment in bitter words and 
went back to my command. Ten minutes afterward, the 
General put me under arrest. The same evening he sent 
his adjutant to offer me a release if I would apologize. I 
refused on the ground that he should apologize first to me. 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 191 

He preferred charges, I was court-martialed, and, for lack 
of proof, acquitted. Not long after that, at an accidental 
meeting between us, the General offered me his hand after 
making a handsome apology for his haste. His magna- 
nimity gave me occasion to express a conclusion I had 
reached on reflection, that my language to b'm had been 
insubordinate, and to express my regrets that I had not kept 
my temper; if I had waited for the General to learn the 
ifacts from General Torbert and other witnesses, he would 
have made amends. From the date of that reconciliation, 
we were better friends than ever before. 

Before that bad break, he had recommended me for the 
vacant colonelcy of the 1st and, on my declining, had pro- 
cured my appointment as major of the 4th. He had cor- 
dially approved choosing me as teacher of the Officers' 
School of Tactics and had shown in many ways his con- 
fidence dn me. It was, therefore, with pleasure that I ac- 
cepted the command of the 57th in his division and corps, 
though the regiment was not from my state. 

My first special effort was to increase the number of the 
regiment by recalling absentees; and this I continued during 
the whole time of my command. 

Our first honor was being appointed wiith a Maine regi- 
ment to guard the flank of the army when on its march 
from Harrison's Landing to Yorktown. I was in command 
of both. We were menaced by the rebel cavalry and had 
to form the hollow sqv&re twice. Nevertheless, we made 
longer marches than had been made in the army up to that 
time, marching in order, keeping proper rests, and having 
our water canteens well filled. We reached our destination 
in excellent condition, after serving as buffer for more than 
two days between our army and the enemy. 

Our trip by water to Alexandria was uneventful. Oi r 
short stay in that city was made memorable by the drunken 
carouse of nearly all the troops. It was a day of de- 
bauchery; staggering and reeling men filled the street 
and drunken men the cars which were to take the troops 
to the Rapidan. The striking exception was the 57th; it 
maintained is sobriety and good order. While I was stand- 
ing near the regiment and feeling great pride in it, General 



IQ2 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

Kearny rode by. "Well, General, what do you think of 
that?" said I, pointing to the boozy crowd. He shrugged 
his shoulders but said nothing. This was the only time I 
ever knew him fail to make his expression adequate to cir- 
cumstances. He could express himself vigorously, as you 
all remember. But the Alexandria spree was too much for 
him. 

We went to the Rapidan on cars and for a few days and 
one night did a great deal of marching as part of Pope's 
army. The night march was to Bristow's station; and your 
merit is the greater because it was the very night when 
General Porter said his part of the army could not see to 
march. Your eyes were good enough. From Bristow's we 
marched to Centreville and thence to the battlefield of 
Groveton. On that day, we guarded artillery from attacks. 
Late at night, we marched to what was known as the "rail 
barricade," on the extreme right of the Union army, arriv- 
ing about 1 a. m. The General had bold me I would find two 
regiments of our troops there. What I did find! there was 
nothing but a picket of sixteen Irishmen and a sergeant, 
posted iin a cK-top of small trees at the right end of a steep 
and very high hill, quite level on top, which seemed to ex- 
tend a great way to the left. In the valley below was a 
rebel camp which, the sergeant said, contained at least two 
brigades, two batteries of small artillery and a squadron of 
cavalry. The outlook was squally; at daybreak, the rebels 
would attack; what could the 57th do against such odds? 
I at once sent to General Kearny a report and a request for 
supports, threw out a company of skirmishers to the left 
along the edge of the hill, formed the regiment behind the 
rail barricade, ordered the Irish picket to stand fast where 
they were and everybody to fire at will and with good aim 
at any rebel who should try to reach the top of the hill. 
I knew that if the enemy should once gain the level ground 
with their artillery, the little 57th would be swept off as 
by a cyclone. Until about 8 a. m., the firing was continu- 
ous, the enemy making several attempts that failed. From 
the Irish picket on the right to the last skirmisher on the 
left, our line of fire was at least a half mile long; the enemy 
probably thought we had a large force. I was greatly re- 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 193 

lieved when about 8 a. m., General , U. S. A., 

appeared in our rear with two brigades of infantry in close 
order and two howitzers mounted on mules. "Who is in 
command here?" asked the General. I saluted. "You may 
withdraw your men." I briefly informed him of the condi- 
tions, asking him if he woi/ld not send his men to replace 
mine and adding that the rebels would follow up my men 
closely and occupy every position abandoned by them. His 
reply was: "You may withdraw them, sir; we'll attend 1 to 
the enemy." I ordered my bugler to sound the quick recall; 
my skirmishers and the Irish picket came in on the run, 
and the regiment, being quite ready, retired on the double 
quick. It was not many minutes before the rebels had 
gained the high ground, placed their batteries in positron 
and forced the conceited general to retreat with heavy loss. 

Rejoining o'v.r division, we took part in the movements 
until dark, when the order came to retreat. To reach the 
road to Centreville, we had to march back to a road that 
ran almost at right angles to ours and crossed 1 the creek. 
On our side of the crossing, tw ohundred yards away, was 
a large residence with a front yard of ample proportions. 
We had occupied it two hours earlier. As I rode up at the 
head of our column, an officer in Confederate uniform passed 
in the dusk into the yard through the front gate. The yard was 
full of rebel soldiers! They had occupied it after we had 
left it. I sent the adjutant to keep the regiment moving 
to the crossing, to enjoin silence and quicken step. The 
next ten minutes were anxious ones with me. The rebels 
might, at any moment, open fire on us from the flank. But 
they were probably as afraid of us as I was of them. 
They couldn't see how many we were. When our last man 
had crossed the creek, I followed. Within about twenty feet 
of a yard full of rebels, I had watched for any movement; 
but they had not stirred. Not a word was spoken on either 
side. We were both glad to get rid of each other. It was 
a close rub for the 57th! 

We marched in retreat and found the road blocked by 
General Poe's brigade. I asked him to let us pass. "No," he 
answered. "The 57th is just the buffer I need between my 
men and the rebels." I made no reply, but hastening to the 



194 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

regiment, marched it, single file and in silence, past Poe's 
brigade by a side path on the left of the road. My orders 
from General Kearny were to rejoin him as soon as practi- 
cable; and I did not icare to have General Poe use the 57th 
as I had used the Irish picket. His brigade was a brave 
one and well able to defend its own rear. The good march- 
ing legs of the 57th stood us in good stead. Next morning, 
as I lay on a stretcher in bivouac at Centreville, below the 
road, I was conscious that somebody was looking intently 
at me. It was General Poe, on horseback, in the road above, 
at the head of his brigade. "How in — did you get here?" 
he asked. 

At Chantilly, the 57th held the picket line, at midnight, 
in a heavy rain, across a large corn field, a few feet only 
from the picket line of the enemy. Orders were, that we 
should! withdraw quietly at 2 o'clock a. m. and follow the 
other troops in retreat. If the 57th had not been in good 
discipline, the movement could not have been successfully 
made; there would have been some whispering or noise. 
As it was, the rebels did not find out before dayibreak that 
we were gone. 

Our march to Washington and thence to the Monocacy 
was without event worthy of notice now. 

You cannot have forgotten how you forded the Potomac 
on a sudden march to Leesburg to surprise the rebels in 
that town. The water was up to the necks of all the short 
men. and all of you had to hold above your heads your 
mcskets and cartridge boxes. But you got through and 
succeeded in capturing and paroling a great many skulkers 
and shirks who were hiding in that pleasant Virginia town; 
how many, I forget, but one of your officers who was there 
tells me we paroled more men than were in the 57th. Not 
much glory in that kind of work, though! 

The "Jeb Stuart raid" around our army was the most 
striking incident of our Monocacy campaign. We heard of 
Jeb before he came. Contrabands and ; Union men told us. 
Ward's brigade was to intercept him. Our brigade was 
placed, for that purpose, I suppose, on the brow of the steep 
hill that overlooked the road which ran between the hill and 
the Potomac. The 57th was next the brow of the hill. The 



PENNSYLVANIA VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 195 

hill was too steep for cavalry to climb; the road was nar- 
row; the river deep. Jeb Stuart was never in greater dan- 
ger than he was in that beautiful morning. When I heard 
the distant tramp of his horses, not having received any 
orders, I galloped over to General Ward, who was not 
further off than two hundred yards, and asked for leave to 
attack. He said he could not give it without orders from 
General Stoneman! I urged the emergency, but he refused 
to take the responsibility. And so, I had to stand quietly 
on that hill-top and look at the gallant Jeb and his gay horse- 
men as they went riding by! 

The great opportunity of the 57th and of its temporary 
commander passed with them; if we had received the leave 
asked for, the 57th would have made itself the crack regi- 
ment of the army, and its commander wot/ild have sported 
a star on his shoulder strap eighteen months earlier than 
he did. But such are the fortunes of war! 

When Colonel Campbell returned to his regiment, I asked 
General Stoneman to give me an order to report to my own 
regiment. He responded by putting me in command of the 
38th New York. Here was a change! But the New York 
boys who had run w'ith the machine gave me no reason to 
complain of them. In the battle of Fredericksburg, where 
some of the fighting was hand to hand, the Sergeant-Major 
saved me by a timely pistol shot, from being bayonetted by 
a rebel soldier. 

The only time I ever saw the 57th after I left it was on 
the battlefield of Chancellorsville, on the morning General 
Howard's corps was surprised' and routed by Stonewall Jack- 
son. I had volunteered on General Hooker's staff, my own 
regiment being temporarily on detached service, and had 
been sent by him to rally the flying troops. The smoky 
field was covered by the disordered masses; batteries of 
artillery were driving on full gallop in retreat; shot and 
shell were whistling; fugitives were flying, and officers try- 
ing to make themselves heard in the awful din of cannon 
and musketry. Amid the confusion and uproar, I saw but 
one regiment moving in order, officers at their posts, com- 
panies in line and flag flying. It was the 57th Pennsylvania! 
When the men recognized me, they gave me three cheers, 



196 HISTORY FIFTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT 

a compliment I have never recalled except with a full heart 
and must I admit it, with grateful tears The 57th ha,, 
right to be proud of its service, discipline and ve e an cour 
a*e on the battlefield of Chancellorsville 

shaft n ° W ' * bM y ° U adi6U as friends > tried ^d true We 
shall never meet again; but as long a s life lasts t ,h»i! 

heTuhrin'of £T„f? "* °" "^ ^ ^wi^ 
neart-tnnll of gratitude and pride. 



